Kiss Me Kill Me
by legendofzeldax
Summary: It dragged me away, until I fell deeper and deeper into hell, and the only sounds I could hear were my endless screams, and the only thing I could see was Sasuke at the top, staring down at me, regret laced in those perfect charcoal eyes. SasuSaku x NejiTen x NaruHina
1. Chapter 1

**Hello everyone! This is my first fanfic, so please review nicely and if there's anything you need to ask or tell me, just message! This story is mainly about SasuSaku, but I'm going to throw in some NaruHina and NejiTen at some points! All characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto, except the characters I made up myself! Enjoy!**

**Chapter One xx**

"Stop fidgeting," Ino told me. "You're making this way more difficult than it needs to be."

I blew out a sigh, trying to keep the pink hair out of my face. "I can't not move around," I told her. "How long does it take to paint nails?"

"Well, excuse me for trying to keep them perfect," she snapped. "This is your first date and I want you to look your best. Hinata, do me a favour and get started on her hair."

"Of course," Hinata replied kindly in that sweet, soft voice of hers. Her fingers start to work through my hair. I wished I could see what she was doing to it.

A loud, audible knock on the door. "Hey, Hinata-chan! Are you in there? I need to talk to you!"

I didn't have to turn around to know that Hinata was blushing. Ino smirked. "What does he need you for, Hinata?"

"I-I don't know," she stammered. "I-I'll go check, if that's okay with you, Sakura?"

"You don't need my permission," I told her, smiling. "Go ahead."

Hinata opened the door nervously. "N-Naruto-kun," she mumbled. "What is it that you need?"

"Hey, do you wanna go to the festival with me?" he asked her, grinning widely, his blue eyes shining.

Hinata stood there for several seconds, just staring, mouth agape. "M-me? Really?"

"Yeah, you! What are you waiting for? Let's go!"

"I-I'm not changed! I h-have to-"

"You look fine, Hinata-chan!" He grabbed her hand. "Bye, ladies!"

The door slammed shut behind them. "Okay," Ino said. "Your nails are done. Guess I'm going to have to do your hair as well."

"Please hurry up," I groaned. "He's going to be here any minute."

"Don't worry about it, your hair is short, this will just take a second," she said, quickly turning my hair into an up-do. "Good thing you've already got your red kimono on. He'll be here in a few seconds."

"How do you know?"

_**Knock knock.**_

I rolled my eyes and stood up. "How do I look?" I asked her.

"Perfect!" she gushed, clapping. "Now go!"

I smiled and opened the door. "Hello, Sai!"

"Hello," he said, smiling. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you," I replied. "Shall we go?"

"Yes, of course. Goodbye, Ino," he called to her. She waved.

**XXXXXX**

"I'm glad you decided to say yes to me and come to the festival," Sai said, smiling. "I'll make sure you have a good time."

"Yes, thank you," I told him. "It was nice of you to ask me."

"Are you hungry? Would you like some ramen?"

"Sure," I said.

"You just stay right here," he told me. "I will be right back with the ramen." I nodded and he left.

"Hey, Sakura-chan!" Naruto called, waving. I glanced over at the direction of his voice, and waved at Hinata and him. They seemed to be having a great time. I looked over at the bench where Neji and Tenten sat. That was odd. I never expected Neji to be here. He's very antisocial, much like Sasuke.

_Sasuke…_

I swallowed. Just like that, my mind and thoughts were clouded with Sasuke. Just the thought of Sasuke-kun left me feeling…bad. And good. I love him, and yet I hate him for the pain he's caused us by leaving Konoha and going on a killing spree.

Who was I fooling? What was I doing here, with Sai? Trying to forget Sasuke? As if that would ever happen. I hated how weak he made me. I hated how beautifully evil he was. I hated _him._

Then again, I didn't hate him.

So I guess I don't know what to feel. He's gone, and he's not coming back. He's not going to give me a second thought; he never has. And here I am miles away from him and yet still hopelessly in love. Did that make me weak? Did it make me pathetic? Or did it just prove how strong my love is and how strong I am to never betray him? Yes, I did try to kill him. But only to save him from his darkness. And yes, he did try to kill me. Have my feelings changed? Not one bit.

"Here you go, Sakura," Sai said, handing me a bowl of ramen and chopsticks. "Enjoy!"

"Um, Sai?" I said, looking up at his hopeful face. "Thank you for this, but…I think I'm going to go."

"But…we just got here," he told me, trying not to look disappointed.

"I know, and I'm really truly sorry. But there's something I have to do." I kissed him on the cheek and gave him the ramen back. "Thank you. But maybe next time."

I left Sai standing there, and I ran home and changed as quickly as I could into my regular clothes. I slipped my sandals on and ran as fast as I could out of Konoha and into the deep forest.

**XXXXXX**

I wasn't looking for Sasuke, if that's what you think. I am simply taking a walk. Of course it is dangerous to be out here, especially at night. I'm not worried, though. I have grown much stronger and I will fight anyone who attacks me.

No matter what.

**XXXXXX**

"Naruto-kun?" Hinata whispered.

"Yes?" he answered, smiling at her warmly.

"Why did you ask me to come here?" she asked.

Naruto stared at her. "What do you mean? Why wouldn't I?"

Hinata stopped walking, and Naruto stopped as well. "Naruto…you know I-"

"Love me?" Naruto completed her sentence. "I know, Hinata-chan."

Hinata looked down, blushing deeply. "N-Naruto, I-"

"It's okay, Hinata," Naruto told her. He gripped her chin and gently forced her to look at him. "I'm over it."

"O-over what?" she stammered, lost in his ocean blue eyes. She couldn't look away even if she tried.

"Sakura," he said. "I'm over her. I love her, but as a sister. She is my best friend." He took both of Hinata's hands in his. "But…I think…I like you."

Hinata gaped, and she was sure her face couldn't get any more red than it already was. "Naruto-kun…t-this is so sudden."

Naruto leaned closer to her, ready for a kiss. The closer he got, the more the heat between them intensified. Hinata couldn't take it anymore. Just as their lips were about to touch…

"Hey, guys!" a voice exclaimed.

Hinata and Naruto jumped apart and glanced at Sai. "Hello, Sai," Hinata said politely.

"What the hell do you want?" Naruto growled, clearly irritated at having been interrupted.

"What are you two doing?"

Naruto gave him the dirtiest look ever seen and Hinata had to hide hers, due to the fact that she was a sweetheart and she didn't make those kinds of faces. After all, it was quite obvious what they were about to do.

"Oh!" Sai gasped, realization dawning on him. "You two are…? Oh! Alright then! Goodbye, Hinata! Goodbye, dickless!"

"Hey!" Naruto shouted as Sai walked away. "I have balls, for crying out loud, Sai!"

Hinata giggled and led Naruto away. "Let's get some ramen," Hinata said.

Of course, Naruto didn't resist.

**XXXXXX**

I crossed a few paths and finally sat down and leaned against a tree, not at all caring about how dirty and muddy I was. I was so achingly tired. I had been walking for so long. Maybe I should go back…but no. I had to rest. I couldn't walk the whole way back. I could barely breathe right now. It was so cold. I took a few deep breaths and sighed heavily. I tilted my head down for a few moments before lifting it back up.

My heart skipped twenty beats when I felt the cool tip of a sharp blade pressed against my neck.

"Don't move," someone said.

That voice…

It couldn't be. Was it?

"S-Sasuke-kun…?"

I couldn't see him; it was completely dark outside. He grabbed my wrist and wheeled me around so that my back was pressed up against him. One arm was splayed across my torso, holding me to him, while the other had the blade against my hip, ready to kill.

"Don't speak," he said, and I was absolutely positive it was Sasuke. His scent was all-too familiar. Why was Sasuke here? And why was I so happy, yet so afraid to see him? His heat enveloped me; I was no longer cold.

"Sasuke-kun, what are you doing?" I cried.

"I said _don't speak,"_ he ordered. "And stop calling me Sasuke_-kun."_

"Let me go!" I shouted. "Let go!" I struggled against him, but it was obviously useless. He was way stronger than me.

"Shut up," he growled.

"No!" I said, finally giving up my struggle. My voice dropped to a whisper. Fear radiated through my body, my heart pounding violently against my chest. "Sasuke-kun, let me go."

"Didn't you hear me? I said stop calling me _Sasuke-kun!"_

"Don't kill me, please," I begged. I know I seemed weak and absolutely pathetic, but I wasn't ready to die. I was reduced to begging for my life. "Please, Sasuke-kun, _please!"_

"Just shut up and I won't have to," he grumbled.

"Kill her, Sasuke!" a female voice called. "Hurry up so we can move on!"

"Shut up!" he shouted back. "And wait!"

She released a loud, audible sigh.

"You're shaking," he whispered against my ear.

_Maybe because you're about to kill me?_ I wanted to shout.

"Sorry, Sakura," he said, but he didn't sound at all like he meant it. A sharp, stabbing pain split through my hip. Something slammed into the back of my head.

Darkness washed over me.

**Uh-oh! Sasuke is such an asshole ;) Review please! Next chapter soon! Love xx**


	2. Chapter 2

**Aloha everyone! This is the next chapter. I hope you guys liked the first one; like I said, this is my first fanfic. I read a lot but I never wrote one until now. I'm going to try updating it as fast as I can, but school's starting soon, so I might be busy! Enjoy!**

**Chapter Two xx**

"What's wrong, Neji?" Tenten asked, slightly nudging him with her elbow. "I know you don't want to be here, but you don't have to walk in silence the whole time."

"I hate this," Neji said. "I want to leave. I want to go into the forest and be alone, away from everyone."

Tenten put her hand on Neji's arm and he smacked her hand away. Tenten gasped at the sudden slap that hurt more than it should have. Emotionally, not physically. She moved away from him.

"That is a very rude way to treat Tenten, Neji!" Rock Lee cried out, wagging his finger at Neji. "I think you should apologize."

Neji, who was already pissed off enough at all the loud noises and people touching him as they brushed past him, snapped, "I think you should get the hell out of my face before I break your arm."

Lee sashayed away, already in tears. "Fine then," he said melodramatically, "I shall leave you alone. Tenten, are you coming with me?"

Tenten glanced at Lee, and then back at Neji. Neji obviously wanted to be alone, so she began to move towards Lee when she felt Neji grab her wrist and pull her back.

"No," Neji practically spat at Lee. "She is not going with you."

Tenten opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Lee's burst of tears. "Alright! I will be strong, because that is what Gai Sensei wants me to be! Goodbye, fellow teammates!"

Tenten cringed and turned to look at Neji. "You upset him."

"Everything upsets him," Neji said. "He's ridiculous."

"I thought you wanted to be alone," Tenten said. "Why didn't you let me go with Lee?"

"Because you're coming with me," he told her. His hand still grasping her wrist, he dragged her away from the festival and out into the dark, deep forest.

**XXXXXX**

I was awake, aware of everything, but I refused to open my eyes. My body ached; I had never felt such pain. My throat was dry and I had to lick my lips many times to get moisture back in them. I was laying on something itchy…grass? Why the hell was I asleep on grass?

Memories of Sasuke came flooding back. Damn that Uchiha. I forced my eyes to open. I sat up, ignoring the agonizing pain flooding through my body, and rubbed my eyes. I looked around. I was in the same spot as before when Sasuke had stabbed me and knocked me out. I was so far away from Konoha, and I was in so much pain. How was I supposed to walk all the way back?

It was freezing. I could see my breath. What time was it? This is fucking ridiculous. How long am I going to sit here and ask myself questions?

Wincing at the sharp pain in my hip, I stood up, knees shaking. But right when the bottoms of my feet hit the grass, I collapsed back onto the ground. I was definitely too weak. My head was killing me; it felt like there were a thousand mini hammers slamming into my skull. I felt useless, so I did the only thing I could think of:

"NARUTO!" I screamed. "SAI! SOMEBODY HELP!"

No reply. Obviously. Tears threatened to spill. _"NARUTO! SAI! HELP! NARUTO!"_

"Will you shut up?" a voice growled from behind me.

I yelped and turned around. Sasuke…looking, unfortunately, as good as ever. His raven hair had grown longer; it still looked perfect. His black eyes pierced right through me; so cold and distant and mysterious, yet so beautiful it scared me. He was still his same old pale, perfect self.

"Get away from me!" I cried. "Stay back!" I searched for the kunai in my pocket, and found nothing.

He smirked, which was the closest to a smile I've seen on him in a long time. "Calm down. How annoying can you be?"

I was too tired to argue, so instead I shouted, _"NARUTO!"_

My voice echoed in the distance. I sighed and yelled his name again. This was never going to work. I would just have to wait here until someone found me.

"Sakura," Sasuke said, walking over to me.

I looked at him. "Sasuke-kun."

He glared at me. "Stop calling me that."

"Will you come back to Konoha?"

"No."

"Then I won't stop calling you Sasuke-kun."

"Pathetic," he said, giving me a look of disgust. "You are absolutely pathetic."

"That's great of you to notice," I stated sarcastically. "Now go away."

"Naruto's not going to come for you," he told me. "So you can give up on that."

"I trust Naruto not to give up on the people that love him," I said. "I can't say the same for you."

Sasuke shot me a death glare. "Hn."

Just then, I heard a familiar voice calling, "Sakura-chan?"

"Naruto?" I shouted back.

"Sakura-chan, where the hell are you?"

I grinned and then looked over at Sasuke, but he was gone.

A moment later, Naruto appeared with Hinata at his side.

"Sakura!" Hinata cried, enveloping me in a hug. "What are you doing here? Are you bleeding? Why are you bleeding? What happened?"

"Sakura-chan, what the hell is going on? Who hurt you?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know," I blurted before I could stop myself. "I couldn't see. It was dark."

Guilt immediately consumed me when they both gave me a look of sympathy. Naruto lifted me and carried me, and Hinata held my hand reassuringly the entire walk back.

I had never felt emotionally worse in my life.

**XXXXXX**

Neji sat quietly, legs crossed, eyes closed, in his own little world, just as he always was. He was relaxed and completely at ease. Tenten? Not so much. She fidgeted and squirmed and wished they would leave. They were here all night. Tenten had to sleep on the grass, and Neji hadn't moved an inch, not to eat or sleep.

"Neji," Tenten whispered. "Are you finished yet?"

Neji's eyes opened for the first time in hours. He turned his head to look at Tenten, but didn't realize how close she was leaning to him, and their lips were suddenly very, _very_ close. Centimetres away.

Neji definitely noticed the blush on Tenten's face, and wondered why she was so nervous. Her chest was pressed against his shoulder, so he could feel her heart beating rapidly. His white orbs had her totally mesmerized, and he didn't even realize it.

After a few seconds she moved away from him and cleared her throat. "Can we go now?" she asked.

Neji didn't reply. He looked out into the forest one more time before he heard a strangled cry. "Neji!" Tenten screamed. Neji stood up and immediately wheeled around and saw Tenten being dragged away by something that…wasn't there. Invisibility? Neji's fists clenched.

He couldn't hit what he couldn't see, so instead he jumped and grabbed Tenten by the waist, pulling her forward, trying to get her away from whatever had her in its death grip.

"Neji!" Tenten shouted. "It's too strong! It's going to rip my legs o-"

Tenten didn't have time to finish that sentence because she was already being pulled away from what had grabbed her, Neji's arms tight around her waist as he dragged her away.

In an instant, there was a loud, horrifying, indescribable noise that rang through Neji's ears. Impossibly hard wind threw him backwards, sailing through the air. He kept Tenten against his body, refusing to unwrap his arms from around her.

They landed on the ground, hard on his back. They lay there for a few moments before Tenten opened her eyes and stuttered, "N-Neji…? Are you…okay?"

She lifted her head up from Neji's chest and looked at him. He was panting, staring at the sky, clearly in shock.

"Are you hurt?" Tenten asked, worried. She stood up and winced at the pain coursing through her body. Neji must have felt ten times worse. "Let me help you," she told him. "Neji? Neji! Answer me!"

Neji continued to stare blankly into the sky. His pants had stopped. In fact, his whole breathing stopped. Tears filled Tenten's eyes. "Neji!" she screamed. "Get up! Neji, please!"

Still no answer from the Hyuga. Tenten couldn't resist; she burst into tears and hugged him. Everything in her being was begging him to wake up.

**XXXXXX**

"I'm sorry about what happened to you," Hinata said as she poured me some tea. "I hope you're comfortable."

I shifted in the hospital bed and offered her a smile. "Thank you, Hinata-chan. It's very nice of you to take care of me."

"It's no problem," Hinata replied sweetly, smiling. Naruto was a lucky guy; Hinata was adorable and her heart was too kind. She pulled out a stool and sat beside my bed. "Sakura-chan, guess what?"

I looked at her. "What?"

"Uchiha Sasuke is nearby," she said. "Naruto said he found his kunai near the place we found you."

The blood drained from my face. "How…how does he know its Sasuke-kun's kunai?"

Hinata shrugged. "He said he just knows that it is Sasuke. He seemed very sure." She smiled. "Aren't you glad? You two can finally bring him back."

I swallowed and gave her a smile, hoping she wouldn't notice that it was fake. "Of…of course I am. That's great."

"I'm glad you are happy," Hinata said. "I will be back soon. I have to go see Naruto. He is in quite a bad mood."

"Why?"

"I-I really don't know," she admitted. "Maybe I can pry it out of him. See you soon!"

With that, she left. I closed my eyes tightly and buried my face in my hands. If Naruto found Sasuke…I didn't even want to think about it. I wanted to tell Naruto and Hinata the truth, but…I just can't.

I can't.

**Poor Neji! Did you like this chapter? Reviews are appreciated! Love xx**


	3. Chapter 3

**Bonjour everyone! Here is the next chapter! I love writing these…even I don't know what I'm going to make happen next. Review please. Aishiteru! 3**

**Chapter Three xx**

"Tenten, maybe you should go home and sleep," Lee suggested. "Neji's going to be awake by tomorrow."

Tenten glanced at Neji as he lay in the hospital bed, passed out. He didn't look peaceful at all. He looked so stressed out.

"No," Tenten said, turning away from Lee. "It's my fault he's hurt. He's the one who saved me." Tenten closed her eyes at the thought. "I'm going to stay here."

"You need some kind of sleep, Tenten," Rock Lee insisted. "You haven't slept since the festival."

Tenten sighed and sat down on a chair right beside Neji's bed. "I'll sleep here. I'm fine, Lee. Thanks for worrying about me." She smiled tiredly at him.

Rock Lee knew that arguing with her was useless. So he sighed and smiled and left, closing the door behind him. Tenten bent over and lay her head down on Neji's bed and closed her eyes.

She urged sleep to consume her, but she was so worried about Neji that sleep wouldn't come. She kept her eyes closed, though, in hopes she would get a few hours of rest.

She dreamt about Neji that night, those pale eyes gazing into hers as if she was the only one he ever wanted, the only person in the world who completed him. She knew, though, that this would never be. Neji was not the type to worry about girls, much less Tenten, who was just a teammate to him.

But you can't help what you feel, right?

**XXXXXX**

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata yelled. "Naruto-kun, come quickly!"

"What?" he said, rushing to her. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Sakura-chan is gone!"

"What the hell do you mean she's gone?" Naruto glanced at the hospital bed. Sure enough, Sakura wasn't there.

"She left t-this note," Hinata said. "Read it."

Naruto took the note from Hinata and read it out loud. "'Dear Naruto and Hinata,'" he read. "'Please do not worry about my well-being. I am fine. I have gone out because I cannot stand this hospital any more. I am just walking around. I will be back soon. Love always, Sakura.'"

"Walking around?" Hinata questioned. "That's odd."

"Is she stupid or something?" Naruto yelled. "How is she going to go back out after she almost got killed?"

Hinata didn't know what to say. She was slightly frightened by this new anger.

"We have to go find her," Naruto said, turning to leave. Hinata grabbed his arm. Surprised, he turned to look at her.

"Naruto-kun…" Hinata began. "Maybe she just wants to be alone. You should leave her for a little while. If she doesn't come back in a few hours m-maybe then we should worry."

Naruto sighed, knowing she was right. "Okay." He moved closer to her and leaned down. Hinata stood up on her tiptoes, trying to ignore the fact that her face had turned into a tomato. Their lips touched and-

"Well, hello, fellow friends!" Rock Lee shouted, causing them to jump apart. "I am here to visit the very beautiful Sakura-chan!"

Cockblocked, yet again.

Rubbing his head in frustration, Naruto snapped, "She isn't here."

Rock Lee gasped. "Where is she?"

"She's…out. For a walk. Go away, Lee," Naruto said.

"I really must be going," Hinata mumbled.

"I'll walk you home!" Naruto offered, following her out.

Rock Lee glanced around, not sure what to do of himself.

**XXXXXX**

Sasuke-kun is nearby. I can feel it. I jumped from tree to tree, ignoring every pain in my body, pushing myself further and further into the forest. I would find him and convince him to go back to Konoha. Everything would be fine. I stopped and looked down at a lake and a waterfall. I caught a flash of raven hair. Perfect. I leaped down from the tree and called out, "Sasuke-kun!"

He froze and turned around. He didn't look happy to see me at all. His look was a mixture of surprise, annoyance and downright anger.

"Sakura," he said. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you," I replied. "It's important."

"I'm busy," he said. "Come back some other time." He started to walk but I ran forward and grabbed his arms to keep him from leaving. He spun around to face me, grabbing my wrists in his hands, not at all gentle. "Don't touch me," he hissed, voice laced with venom.

"I need to talk to you," I repeated, trying to ignore how close he was to me. "Right now."

"I told you I'm _busy,"_ he snapped. "Now _leave."_

"No," I refused, shaking my head. "I need to talk to you _right now."_

"Fine!" he snarled. "Talk, then. What do you want?"

I swallowed. "Come back to Konoha."

He released me and pushed me away. "Go home, Sakura. I don't have time for this."

He turned around to leave and I ran to him and jumped on his back, forcing him to stay. "You have to listen to me!" I cried.

"Sakura!" he shouted, obviously angry. "Get the hell off me!"

I didn't think he could throw me off, but within a few minutes he managed to release himself from my grip…

By accidentally throwing me into the lake.

At least, I hoped it was an accident. The water was freezing, and I hated every second of being in there. How could I not know how to swim? I mentally slapped myself. My whole body stung with sharp pain, but it eventually faded into numbness. Did I swallow water? Exasperation overwhelmed me. I closed my eyes.

A few moments later, I felt someone grab my wrist and lift me out of the water, carrying me back to land. I didn't have to open my eyes to know it was Sasuke. I knew it because of his familiar scent. I knew it because of the way I was pressed up against him, and the way my heart was racing because of how close we were. No one could make me feel that way. No one but Sasuke-kun.

I heard him grumbling something about me being such a burden.

He set me down on the ground and I was instantly cold again. "Wake up," he ordered. "Open your eyes, Sakura."

I opened my eyes slowly and bolted upright once I started gagging and coughing. "T-thanks Sasuke-kun," I said, coughing again.

"Hn." He paused. "You're still annoying. And a burden."

"Come back to Konoha," I whispered. "Please."

"No," he said. I threw my arms around his neck.

"Sasuke-kun, _please,"_ I begged.

"Let go of me," he demanded. But he made no move to push me off.

"Please, Sasuke-kun!" I shouted. This time, he untangled my arms from around him and stood up. I stood up as well.

"You should go home, Sakura," he said. "What you are trying to do is useless and a complete waste of time. It won't work."

"S-Sasuke-kun…"

"Leave. Now."

Tears spilled down my cheeks. "S-sasuke, please…"

"Tears do nothing but make you seem weak and pathetic."

"But I _love_ you."

"I almost killed you a day ago," he snapped.

"Why didn't you?" I countered. "You couldn't! There's still some good left in you, Sasuke-kun, if you'd just open your eyes and see how many people love you…"

"Love is nothing. It's weak. Useless. Love does nothing but bring you pain."

"That's not true!" I cried. "Love is what kept me going for so long, and love is the reason why I'm not going to give up on you!"

He shook his head and brushed past me. "Go home. Go back to Naruto. Be with that other new teammate of yours. You and I won't ever happen. It will never work. I've broken my bonds with everyone. I'm alone. So go, and do yourself a favour and never come look for me again."

I gaped and turned around to say something. But he was already gone.

**XXXXXX**

"Tenten."

Tenten opened her eyes immediately and shot straight up, pain shooting up and down her spine from being bent over for so long.

"Neji!" she cried, and before she could think twice about it, she had her arms wrapped around him in a bear hug.

Neji's throat went dry. He had no idea what to say. Tenten wasn't one to touch him this way. What was he supposed to do? He had no clue, so he just sat there and waited. For whatever reason, he was very content and comfortable in Tenten's warm embrace.

She pulled away. "Neji, I'm so glad you're okay!"

"Hn," was all Neji said in response. He was not one to exchange cheesy, heart-warming words.

Tenten grinned. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine." He swung his legs off the side of the bed. "How long have I been unconscious?"

"A day," Tenten replied. She began to fidget with her nails and hair, shifting uncomfortably in her seat. "Neji?"

"What?"

She blushed. "I just wanted to say…thanks. For, you know, saving me."

Neji looked at her and wondered why the hell she was blushing. "Hn. Tenten?"

"Yes?"

"How long did you stay here?"

"A day."

He stared at her. "You stayed the _whole time?"_

"Was I not supposed to?" she asked.

"What? No…I mean, I'm just asking, Tenten."

She shrugged. "Okay. But do you-"

Neji stood up. "Where are you going?" Tenten asked.

"The lake," he replied. "I need to relax in the lake."

"Oh. Okay…be careful."

Neji looked at her. Since when did Tenten become so worried and protective of him? And why was she always so nervous and fidgety every time he got close?

"Come with me," he said. Startled, she glanced up at him.

"To the lake?"

"Yes."

"You want me to go to the…?"

"Yes, the lake, let's go."

Tenten felt like Hinata around Naruto. She turned beet red and followed him out the door.

**Ooh, Neji is so completely clueless! I'm doing a lot more of NejiTen and NaruHina than I was planning on doing, but don't worry, there will be plenty of SasuSaku soon. Review please. Love xx**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here is the next chapter, guys. Hope you like it. Please review. Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.**

**Chapter Four xx**

"I love the lake," Tenten said, seeming distracted as she kicked off her sandals. "It's very relaxing."

"Yes," Neji agreed. Tenten sat at the edge and dipped her feet in.

"Are you going to meditate again?" she asked him. He nodded and sat beside her, crossing his legs and closing his eyes.

"Careful," Tenten giggled. "Don't get too into your own little world. We don't want that creature coming back."

"If it even _was_ a creature," Neji murmured, eyes still closed. "It could've been a person."

"An invisible person?" Tenten asked. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Anything's possible," Nehi said. "Now stop speaking to me."

Tenten sighed at his cold attitude and kept her eyes focused on the lake. As she watched the colours from the sky reflect upon the lake's beauty, she noticed a random flash of red. Tenten blinked, sure she was seeing wrong, but again, there was that blur of red.

"Neji," Tenten whispered. "Neji."

Neji didn't reply, so Tenten's voice grew louder. "Neji!"

She glanced back at the red blur in the water. It was either coming closer or growing larger. She couldn't tell. She whipped her feet out of the lake as fast as she could, sending drops of water splashing towards Neji. His eyes snapped open. "What the hell?" he barked.

"Neji, _look!"_ Tenten cried, pointing at the red thing. Neji swore and stood up, staring at it as it swam towards them. It seemed to be growing bigger.

Neji shook his head in slow realization. "Tenten," he spoke. "It's not going to harm us."

"What?" she cried. "How do you know?"

"Because it's not some kind of creature," he replied. "It's blood."

**XXXXXX**

I was about halfway back to Konoha when I realized I'd left my headband back at the lake. I turned around and made my way back, Sasuke never once leaving my head. His words echoed endlessly into my skull; "_You and I won't ever happen. It will never work. I've broken my bonds with everyone. I'm alone."_

_Alone. Alone. Alone._

That's all he ever spoke of. Being _alone._ In solitude. Isolated from everyone who ever loved him. Detached from the world of love and hope.

_Alone._

My fists clenched in anger. He didn't have to be alone if he wasn't so determined to destroy the Hidden Leaf Village. He could come back. To Konoha. To me.

With his beloved brother Itachi gone, I understood that Sasuke truly felt alone. It wasn't fair. He has fallen so deep into darkness; he's almost at the bottom. When will he give up his no-mercy murderous spree and go back to his arrogant but regular self?

Another thought crossed my mind. Who said he was even going to give up his no-mercy murderous spree? For all I know, he could keep spinning further and further into darkness until there was nothing left, and Sasuke Uchiha became truly evil.

Familiar voices snapped me out of my thoughts. "Lee!" a female voice cried. "Wake up, Lee!"

_Tenten?_

"Lee, I swear to my father's grave if you don't get up I'll-"

_Neji?_

"Tenten?" I called. "Neji? Is everything okay?"

"Sakura!" Tenten cried. "Come quick, Sakura! We're by the lake!"

I sprinted to the direction of their voices and gasped when I saw Tenten and Neji kneeling over Lee's bloody, motionless body.

"What happened?" I asked.

"We found his body in the lake!" Tenten told me. "We have no idea what happened!"

"Move over," I demanded. "I'm a medic ninja. I can take care of this."

As I worked on Lee's body, Neji stood with a blank expression while Tenten was clutching his arm and sobbing into his shirt.

If Lee weren't dying, I would've considered the situation to be cute. After all, they seemed like an adorable couple. Maybe I could set them up later.

"Well?" Neji snapped at me. "How is he?"

"Cool the attitude," I told him. "He'll be fine. He just needs rest. He was definitely attacked, though. This was no accident, and it didn't happen too long ago."

At the same time Neji and Tenten diverted their attention elsewhere, Lee's eyes opened. He looked at me. "Sakura-chan…?"

"Yes, Lee, it's me," I said to him soothingly. "Are you okay? Can you tell me what happened?"

Lee swallowed, voice weak. He struggled to speak. "I…I went out looking for you, but instead found…S-Sasuke…"

My blood ran cold. "And what happened?"

"I told…told him I was looking for you and…h-he got m-mad…" Lee trailed off, took a few deep breaths and caught my eye. "He said I have no business s-searching for you and then he…he attacked…me." With that, Lee's eyes closed and he fell unconscious again. I swallowed hard. Sasuke did this to him? I shuddered at the thought.

"Neji," I spoke. He looked at me. Tenten was no longer crying, but she still had his arm locked in a death grip. It was cute the way she was holding on; it looked like she felt that if she let go, she'd get lost or something. "Take him to the hospital. He needs to rest."

Neji nodded and hoisted Lee over his shoulder. All three of them left, but not before Tenten muttered a thank you.

Sasuke-kun…

I can't believe he did this, but at the same time, I can. I bit my lower lip in thought and nearly jumped out of my skin when I heard someone behind me say, "Sakura."

I wheeled around and gaped. "Sasuke?" I squeaked. "What are you doing here? I thought you left. And why did you hurt Lee?"

Sasuke closed his eyes for a few seconds and when he opened them the sharingan was activated. He looked, to put it mildly, _pissed off._

"Why was he looking for you?" Sasuke snapped. At the same time he was walking towards me, I was walking back. I slammed into a tree.

"I don't know," I said. "Maybe he was worried about me because he actually _cares._ Why…why do you even mind that he was looking for me?"

Sasuke-kun was so close, he was either ready to kiss me or kill me. I was pretty sure it was the second one, though, because of the deadly look in his eyes.

He leaned so close to me I couldn't resist the blush that crept up into my face. "Tell him," Sasuke began, voice low and dripping with venom. "Tell him I better not see him around here again, or I'll kill him for sure. Remind Sai that too." His fists clenched. "They're just _asking_ to die."

"Sasuke-kun, you're being ridiculous!"

"Did they touch you?" he asked, cocking his head to the side.

"What do you mean _touch me?"_

"Did they…" he paused, thought carefully of his words, and spoke again. "Did they touch you _that way?"_

I stared, completely dumbfounded. "That way?"

"You know," he snapped. "Did they feel you up?" he practically spat out the words.

I gasped. "No! That's-what? No!" _Sai and Rock Lee feeling me up? Gross._

"If you care about them tell them not to come around here anymore," he said in a low, murderous tone. "I won't hesitate to end their lives."

I gaped. "Sasuke, that's not-"

But I couldn't complete my sentence because he'd already disappeared, wind whipping psychotically.

I stared at the spot he'd been, so close to me seconds ago.

**XXXXXX**

"Hinata-chan!" Naruto shouted. "Hinata-chan, where are you?"

"O-over here!" she called back, straining to speak loudly. Hinata was usually a very quiet person.

He turned to look at her, grinning and embracing her in a nice, warm hug. "Where were you?"

Hinata opened her mouth to answer but didn't get to because he placed a soft kiss on her forehead and led her into the kitchen. "You made ramen?" he exclaimed.

"Yes, well, I know that you-"

"Thank you Hinata!" Naruto shouted, giving her lips a quick kiss.

They both stopped moving when they realized what he'd done. Hinata had wanted their first kiss to be more…romantic? Maybe a bit longer? And not over some ramen?

As if reading her thoughts, Naruto turned to her and kissed her again, except this time his lips were hard against hers, and she was in his embrace, and they were kissing, kissing, kissing, for what seemed like forever. The kiss was so soft yet so passionate, sparking fire in both of them.

"Naruto!" a manly, angry voice snapped. Hinata and Naruto jumped away from each other and Hinata blushed a deep red when she saw Neji and Tenten standing there.

"Oh, uh, hey Neji," Naruto said sheepishly. "Sorry about kissing your, uh, you know, cousin."

Neji glared at him. "I don't know, Neji," Tenten interrupted. "They're pretty cute together!"

Neji turned his glare onto Tenten. "How can you say that? My cousin with Naruto? That's repulsive."

Tenten crossed her arms over her chest and turned away in a huff. "At least _Naruto_ can tell when a girl really likes him." Which was not true, really, but she needed to say _something_ to get him to notice.

"What?" Neji asked, still clueless. "What do you mean?"

Naruto dragged a hand down his face when Tenten left, slamming the door behind her. "And I thought _I_ was stupid," Naruto muttered.

Hinata shook her head and sighed, lips still tingling from the kiss. "Neji…isn't it quite obvious?"

Neji stared at her. "Is it supposed to be? I have no idea what you are talking about."

"If you weren't my girlfriend's cousin, I'd kick you out without another word," Naruto said, moving towards Neji, grabbing his shoulders and pushing him out. "But since you are, I'll simply show you out the door and explain to you that Tenten is in love with you. Thank you for visiting. Have a nice day." With that, Naruto slammed the door in Neji's face.

Neji stood there for several minutes, wondering if they were joking or not.

**Yeah, Neji's clearly stupid when it comes to girls. Reviews would be appreciated. Thank you. Love xx**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello Here is the fifth chapter, hope you like it. I'm going to start writing in Sasuke's POV as well, and maybe Neji's, but that's a big maybe. Review please **

**Chapter Five xx**

"_Sakura-chan," a voice called._

_I turned around. "Sasuke-kun? Since when did you call me Sakura-chan? And where are we?"_

_He didn't reply, he just kept moving closer to me. We were literally inside nothing. Everything was black. We were in an empty void and there was no way out. The place scared me to my very core. _

"_Sasuke-kun, we need to leave!" I cried. "There's no exit!"_

_His expression changed once he neared me; his once blank face turned into an evil smirk. His mangekyou sharingan was activated; blood dripped from his left eye. "W-what are you doing?" I stammered. "Sasuke…?"_

_Blood dripped from the walls of this hollow black room. Blood streaming from every corner. It seemed to be falling into a hole that suddenly appeared; it looked like a whirlpool, colours of black and red and purple mixing._

"_Don't get too close to that," Sasuke teased, madness mixed in his voice. I could _feel_ the evil radiating from everything. There was no light here. No goodness; no love. Just a massive pit of darkness and evil. "You don't want to die, do you?"_

"_Don't come any closer, Sasuke!" I warned. "Stay away from me!"_

"_You don't have a choice either way," he continued, as if I hadn't spoken. "It'll drag you in eventually."_

_The whirlpool, growing larger and larger, caught up to Sasuke, but he didn't get sucked in._

_Fear pulsed through me, and I had an urge to run as far and as fast as I could, but there was nowhere to go. Eventually the whirlpool caught up to me, and I fell to the ground. I screamed as it dragged me in, reaching my arms out, trying to grasp something, anything that would keep me out. But there was nothing to hold on to. Covered in blood, I looked up at Sasuke who was grinning evilly at me._

"_Why?" I whimpered, knowing this was the end. Tears streamed down my face. "Why did you do this to me?" _

_He let out a psychotic laugh. "I've already told you; my bonds are broken. I'm alone. I don't care about anyone or anything, and I definitely don't care about _you."

_There was a voice echoing in the background, singing; "On the first page of our story, the future seemed so bright…"_

_My eyes locked with his._

"_Then this thing turned out so evil, I don't know why I'm still surprised."_

_More tears slid down my face._

"_Even angels have their wicked schemes, and you take that to new extremes."_

_Sasuke's face grew angry._

"_But you'll always be my hero, even though you've lost your mind."_

_I let out a choked sob at the truth in those words and his face softened. In one swift moment, his eyes turned back to black, and he stared at me wide-eyed, reaching out to me, but it was too late. I was already gone. The whirlpool dragged me away, until I fell deeper and deeper into hell, and the only sounds I could hear were my endless screams, and the only thing I could see was Sasuke at the top, staring down at me, regret laced in those perfect charcoal eyes._

I bolted awake, gasping for breath, running a hand through my hair. What an _awful_ dream. I turned to my radio where Rihanna continued to sing her chorus. I gritted my teeth. Damn it. That stupid song gave me that nightmare. I shut the radio off and sighed.

I showered and brushed my teeth, even though it was still four in the morning and dark outside. I threw on my clothes and made my way outside, deciding to take a long walk around Konoha just to take my mind off the dream, even though it was freezing outside. Of course, I ended up leaving Konoha and walking in the forest as well. I couldn't help it; bad habit. But I swear; if I see Sasuke, I'll burst into tears.

"Sakura."

I froze. Oh, no. You have _got_ to be kidding me. For the first time in my life, I did _not_ want to see Sasuke. But I couldn't just leave. So I turned around to face him. I let out the breath I didn't know I had been holding when I saw his eyes were their regular black.

"Sasuke-kun," I greeted him. I couldn't help adding the _kun_ at the end. It was a habit.

"Haven't you learned your lesson from being out in the forest alone?" he asked.

"Obviously not," I replied. "Otherwise I wouldn't be here."

"What are you doing out here?" he said. "It's four in the morning."

"I'm aware of what time it is," I told him. "I just needed to take my mind off of things." I refused to look at him; I'd probably sob pathetically and run into his arms and beg him to tell me the dream would never happen in reality; that he would never actually sit back and watch me die.

"You asked me to leave you alone a few days ago," I stated. "Yet every time you see me you greet me. Why?"

Sasuke stared at me for a couple of seconds and then smirked. "I don't have an answer for that. I do it on impulse. I see you and I can't ignore you."

For a second, it felt like he was flirting with me. But then it felt like he was mocking me. I crossed my arms. "Yeah. Sure. I believe you," I said sarcastically.

"Your hair is so bright," he told me. "So bright compared to the dark that I'm used to." He narrowed his eyes at my hair as if he could burn it mentally.

"Does it bother you?"

His eyes found mine again. "If it did?"

"Well then I guess that's just too bad for you, isn't it?"

He smirked again, and then glanced at something over my shoulder. I turned around and saw a girl with red hair, glasses, and a very slutty outfit, glaring at me.

"Who are _you?"_ she snapped at me.

I blinked at her. Did she just…? "No, bitch," I shot back. "Who are _you?"_

"Sasuke-kun," she cooed, moving towards him, feeling up his arms and torso. I've never seen him give anyone such a dirty look, and for Sasuke, that's saying a lot. He pushed her away. Rage boiled inside me. "Who is this pink-haired girl?" I wanted to punch her out for calling him Sasuke_-kun,_ but I kept my cool.

I put a hand on my hip. "Uh, hello? I'm right here, you know. Are you so scared you can't even speak to me directly, slut?"

She turned to me, glaring. "Are you Sasuke-kun's girlfriend?"

My throat went dry. "No." _I wish._

"Then you have no business being here! Go away-"

"Karin," Sasuke interrupted her. She looked at him, fluttering her eyelashes.

"Yes, Sasuke-kun?"

"Shut up," he snapped. "And leave. I'm busy."

"Oh, Sasuke-kun," she swooned. "I know you don't mean that. Now tell this pink-haired freak to go-"

"Karin!" Sasuke growled. "Go the hell away!"

She sighed and looked at me. "I'm not going to just hand over Sasuke-kun," she warned. "I don't know who you are, but he's mine. If I have to kill you to-"

I slugged her, once, and she collapsed and knocked out. I adjusted my glove. _"Anyway,"_ I continued, looking at Sasuke, who didn't even give Karin a second glance. "We were talking about my hair?"

**Sasuke's POV**

I glanced at her and felt an odd attraction at the way she just punched my teammate. She deserved it. She's fucking annoying. Even more annoying than Sakura.

"Hn," I replied. "Your hair. Too bright."

She touched it. "I think it's pretty cute."

Where did this newfound confidence come from? The old, 12 year old Sakura I once knew was insecure as hell. Maybe she had changed. Then again, the old Sakura would punch out any girl that showed affection towards me, as she did just now. So maybe she hadn't changed. How was I supposed to know? I closed my eyes and opened them again, activating my mangekyou sharingan for no reason whatsoever.

I don't know what the hell had gotten into her, but her eyes filled with tears and she stepped away from me, as if remembering something.

"Is there a problem?" I asked her.

"N-no," she choked. "I just..." She shut her eyes tightly and rubbed her head in frustration. "Turn the sharingan off!" she shrieked.

**Sakura's POV**

He glared at me. "No. Why?"

_That glare._ So evil. So wrong. It reminded me so much of the dream. That _dream. UGH!_

Tears streamed down my face. _"Sasuke-kun!"_ I shouted. _"Turn the sharingan off, please!"_

I fell to my knees, thoughts of the dream so completely vivid in my mind that I could barely breathe.

"It's off, Sakura," he said. Did I detect a hint of…worry in his voice? I must really be hallucinating. "Calm down."

I stole a glance at him and with absolute relief noted that the sharingan was turned off. I stood up, but my legs were suddenly so weak that I just toppled over again. To my surprise, just before I could hit the ground, Sasuke was in front of me, catching me in his arms.

"Sakura, what the hell is wrong with you?" he snapped. I was still wrapped in his arms. He was so warm…it may sound cheesy, but I could stay here, content in his embrace forever.

"I think…I think I'm okay now," I mumbled. I kept my hands on his chest and twisted my fists into his shirt. I looked up at him. I didn't want to blush, but it's not like I could stop it. I mean, the guy's face was inches away from mine.

It was so embarrassing, because my heart was racing so fast and I was pressed up against him so I _knew_ he could feel it.

I almost dared to kiss him. I wanted to so badly; I wanted to lean in and feel his cool lips on mine and have him wrap his arms around me and tell me he was wrong to leave and that he was going to come back to Konoha. I _almost_ thought he might be leaning in. But that crap only happens in movies. He released me and took a step back.

"Sasuke-kun-"

"I'm leaving." He looked down at Karin, and his eyes flicked back up to me. "She's not important. She can stay there. I really don't care." He paused. "Remember what I said before, Sakura? You and I will never be."

"We just…" I struggled for words. "I mean, you almost…"

He shook his head in denial. "No, no I didn't."

"But we were just…I mean, we-"

"Nothing," he said. "We're nothing. We never will be."

He disappeared, but not before I could feel my heart crack in two.

**Yep, yep. This was all SasuSaku. Kind of a boring chapter, but it'll get better. Please review, it is much appreciated. Love xx**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello! I might end this story soon because not many people are reviewing, but I'm not sure yet. Anyways, hope you like this one. :) **

**Chapter Six xx**

"Tenten?" Neji asked. She stood on the mountain, staring at the massive forest in below her. She didn't answer.

Neji awkwardly poked her. "Tenten? We need to talk."

This time, she turned to look at him. "What's there to talk about?" she snapped. "I mean, it's pretty damn obvious what my feelings have been for you this whole time. How are you going to tell me you did not notice?"

He crossed his arms over his chest defensively. "I'm-I don't…you know…pay attention to _girls."_

"Are you saying your gay?"

He glared at her. "No of course I'm not _gay,_ I just never thought about _liking women."_

"So…you're gay…?"

"No!" he snapped. "I'm not gay, Tenten."

She looked down, a blush creeping to her cheeks. "So…what do you…think?"

For the billionth time, Neji was clueless. "About what?"

She glared at him. "For Pete's sake, Neji! About me liking you!"

"Why do you like me?"

"Well…because…" she took and deep breath exhaled. "Because you've got the most beautiful pale eyes I've ever seen in my life and they're totally mesmerizing and your hair is just _amazing_ and you're so strong and smart and you're so…" She swallowed. "Hot."

She wanted to tell him she had mostly fallen for his personality and just _him_ altogether, but he'd probably ask why and she didn't really know why. After all, he was pretty cold to everyone.

He blinked at her. Well, that was very straightforward. "I don't know."

"You don't _know?"_

He shook his head, and he could _feel_ her growing angry. "You don't _know._ I pour my heart out to you and you don't _know?!_ You don't know _what?! _Are you _that_ stupid? I thought you were some kind of _genius_ you asshole! What kind of Hyuuga prodigy crap are you?" She brushed past him.

"Where are you going?" he called.

"Nowhere!" she snapped. "And stop looking at me that way, it's not cute!"

She continued to leave, grumbling about how cute he was. He cocked his head to the side, dumbfounded.

**XXXXXX**

"Sakura-chan!"

I stopped and turned to look at Naruto, who was holding Hinata's hand and sprinting towards me.

"We have important news!" he exclaimed breathlessly once he reached me. He grinned.

"Well, could you hurry up?" I asked. "These fruits are heavy."

"Let me help you," Hinata offered, grabbing a bag of fruits from my hand.

"Arigato, Hinata-chan," I grinned at her and she smiled.

"We know where Sasuke is!" he cried.

My stomach dropped. "Oh?" I forced a smile. "And where would that be?"

"There's some little old house hidden in the forest just outside of Konoha," he said. "That's where Sasuke is. I know it. I saw him going inside, and he had a key, Sakura. It has to be where he's staying."

"I thought he was with Orochimaru?" I asked.

He shook his head. "We don't know anything about Sasuke anymore. From what I know, I'm pretty sure Orochimaru's dead."

I swallowed. "So what are you doing to do? About Sasuke?"

"Visit that bastard," he grumbled. "Beat his ass and take him home."

"N-Naruto-kun…" Hinata began. "You have grown stronger, but…don't you t-think Sasuke has as well?"

_Damn straight he has,_ I thought. _Ten times stronger than before._

Naruto scoffed. "I can beat that teme any day. It's no problem, Hinata-chan! Don't worry about me!"

"But, Naruto-kun…"

Naruto bent down and pressed his lips against hers, slightly biting her lower lip before pulling away. I had never seen Hinata turn so red before in my life.

"Don't worry about me, Hinata-chan," he said, grinning. "Everything's fine."

"Who's going to go with you, Naruto?" I asked.

"Gaara, Shikamaru…" he thought for a moment. "You."

I froze. "You…want me to come?"

"Yeah! Of course! You're the best medical ninja here! Why wouldn't you come?"

I flashed him another fake smile. "Of course. When are we leaving?"

"Tonight, Sakura-chan! So be ready!" he grabbed Hinata's hand and tugged her away.

I was stiff and nervous the whole walk home. I was going to have to face Sasuke, and help Naruto and Gaara and Shikamaru fight him and drag him back to Konoha and pretend nothing happened between us in the past few days.

I sighed. _When did my life get so complicated?_

**XXXXXX**

"Sakura-chan," Naruto whispered. "Are you sure you're ready for this? You look kind of sick."

"Hmph. I'm fine."

"Are you sure? Because-"

"I'm _fine,_ Naruto!" I said sharply.

"Okay…jeez." He stepped away from me, as if expecting me to explode.

I wanted to apologize for my rudeness, but I left it alone. It was freezing outside, and I was starving. I definitely should've listened to Ino when she told me to eat before we left. I wasn't in the mood to battle Sasuke with my friends, but I had no choice. I had to go, no matter what. Otherwise, Naruto would know something was wrong.

"I don't even care about Sasuke," Shikamaru complained. "Why am I coming? This is so troublesome."

"You're coming because I asked you to," Naruto answered.

"Can't you get over your laziness for one night?" I asked him.

He blew out a sigh. "What a drag."

"Naruto," Gaara said "Are you sure Sasuke is in that house?"

"Positive," Naruto replied.

I glanced at Gaara. I couldn't deny that he was _very_ good-looking. No girl could, actually. Ino had a huge crush on him in the past, but that was after Sasuke and before she hooked up with Sai (which, yes, happened a day after me and Sai's date). Before, he was just like Sasuke; filled with rage and hate. But now, he is actually a good person and very close friends with Naruto.

I hadn't realized I was staring at him. "Sakura?" Gaara asked. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

My cheeks flamed and I looked away quickly. "No reason."

"Hey, Shikamaru?" Naruto spoke as we walked.

"What?" he said.

"Where's Temari?"

Shikamaru twitched. "How the hell am I supposed to know?"

"Isn't she your girlfriend?" Naruto asked.

"Who the hell said that?" he answered, clenching his fists.

Naruto grinned. "Heh…calm down, Shikamaru…I'm just kidding around with you."

Shikamaru looked away. We all walked in silence for several minutes.

"Wait…so she's _not_ your girlfriend?" Naruto said.

I slammed my fist against Naruto's face, sending him flying ahead.

"Thank you," Shikamaru breathed. "If you weren't going to do it, I was."

"No problem."

"Sakura-chan…" Naruto muttered, stumbling back to us. "What was that for?"

"Just _walk,_ Naruto," I ordered. "You're irritating me."

He rubbed his injured cheek and mumbled something about being innocent.

"Naruto," Gaara said in that smooth voice of his. "Sakura. Shikamaru. The house is right there." He lifted a hand to point.

"Well, then," Naruto said, anger radiating off of him. "Let's go. No holding back, right guys? We'll beat him until he's close to death if that's what it takes to get him back to Konoha."

Gaara nodded in agreement and Shikamaru grumbled about how this was so troublesome. I, however, stood there, feet rooted to the ground, not at all ready to go through with this.

They forged ahead, and I was still standing there, staring at nothing.

"Sakura," Gaara said. "Let's go. What are you doing?"

I snapped back to reality when he lightly pushed my shoulder. "Oh, sorry," I said, meeting his gaze. "Let's…go, I guess."

He stared at me for a moment as if he could see through me and he knew exactly what was going on with me, but instead of saying anything he shook his head and followed me towards the house.

I expected them to blow down the door and make a hell of an entrance, but instead Naruto gave a loud knock and I sighed and put a hand on my hip.

To my utter surprise, Sasuke answered the door. He saw us, and immediately his blank stare turned into one of his signature glares.

"Teme," Naruto said. "We're here to take your stubborn ass back to Konoha."

"Don't waste your time," Sasuke replied. "It's not going to happen. Give up on it."

Naruto scoffed. "Sasuke, since when have I been one to give up on anything?"

Sasuke stepped out of the house and slammed the door behind him. He and Naruto stared each other down for at least a minute. I was pretty sure everyone could feel the intense tension in the air. It made me uncomfortable.

"Who's living with you?" Naruto asked.

"I don't think that's any of your concern," Sasuke snapped, still glaring.

"Just answer me."

"Why don't you take a guess, since you care so much?"

Naruto made a "tsk" sound. "You're alone, aren't you?"

Sasuke cocked his head to the side. "Good guess." His gaze wandered over Gaara, Shikamaru and I. "So you brought the sand ninja." He paused. "And the lazy one." He looked at me and his glare seemed to increase tenfold. "Hn. Sakura."

"I'll beat you until you can't even stand, Sasuke!" Naruto shouted. "I'll do everything in my power to get you back to Konoha!"

Sasuke smirked. "Don't think I'm backing down without a fight."

Everyone immediately tensed and got ready to battle.

Let the games begin.

**Sorry for the kind of short chapter. Anyway, like I said, this story isn't getting much reviews, so I might end it very soon, but I'm still not sure yet! Love xx**


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, I don't think I'm going to end this story soon because you reviewers seem to like it! So I'm going to keep writing when I have time and thank you for reviewing, I appreciate it. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Seven xx**

"Gaara, Shikamaru, Sakura-chan, step back," Naruto said. "I got this."

"Hn," was what Sasuke replied for the billionth time. Without hesitation, Naruto jumped towards him, fist raised and ready for a blow. Sasuke caught his fist easily but didn't seem to expect it when Naruto almost immediately used his other hand and slugged him.

Sasuke stumbled back, surprised. Naruto charged at him again but this time Sasuke had already activated his sharingan and disappeared right when Naruto threw another punch. Naruto growled and looked around to see where Sasuke had gone.

"Teme!" Naruto shouted. "Where the hell are you? Come out already!"

Instantly, Sasuke dropped down from above where I'd assume he was perched on a tree, and drew his sword.

"Shadow clone jutsu!" Naruto exclaimed, just before Sasuke tried to stab him. Dozens of Naruto's were all around.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed.

As the battle continued on, Gaara walked up to me. "Sakura," he said. "If Naruto gets severely injured you can…heal him, can't you?"

"What makes you think he'll get beat up?" I asked him. "Naruto has gotten pretty strong."

"So has Sasuke."

"What's that supposed to mean? You don't think Naruto can beat him?" My temper was rising.

Gaara stared at me, his usually emotionless face getting annoyed. "I didn't say that. I _said_ if he gets injured heal him. That's all, Sakura."

"Fine."

He turned and walked away. I grumbled about how bossy he was, and I didn't think he heard me until he looked at me over his shoulder and narrowed his eyes.

Whatever.

**XXXXXX**

"Neji?"

Neji glanced at his very shy, small cousin. "Yes?"

"Do you really think Naruto-kun is going to be okay?" she asked nervously.

"Hn," Neji replied. "Naruto's strong." He paused. "So is Sasuke."

She stared at him expectantly.

"I don't know," he said, being completely honest. "If he gets angry enough, he'll be fine."

"Angry?" Hinata asked.

"Yes. Have you not seen the blond fight when he's angry? He gets incredibly strong." _But then again, so does Sasuke,_ Neji thought.

Hinata thought about it for a moment, and decided he was right. Plus, Naruto would probably get very angry fighting Sasuke. Sasuke is an asshole, after all.

"Hinata-chan! Neji! Finally!"

The cousins looked over and Neji was surprised to see Ino of all people running towards them.

"I've been looking everywhere for you two!" she exclaimed.

"W-what is it, Ino-chan?" Hinata said.

"Did you hear Sakura-chan's scream?" Ino cried. "Did you _hear that?"_

Hinata shook her head, a worried expression crossing her face. "D-do you think she's okay?"

Ino panicked. "I don't _know!_ Neji! Please go see what's going on! I know Naruto asked you to take care of Hinata, but she can go with you!"

Neji opened his mouth to refuse but his eyes caught Hinata's pleading ones.

"Please, Neji?" Hinata asked. "I'm so worried about them, and if Sakura-chan screamed…"

Neji stared at her and pressed his lips together. Her pleading eyes did not waver. She was determined.

"Fine," he grumbled. "Let's go."

Hinata smiled and stood up. "Arigato, Neji, Hinata," Ino said. "Come back safely."

Neji nodded and Hinata waved a goodbye to Ino, and with that, they were off.

**XXXXXX**

"Gaara!" I screamed.

"Hn, so you care about the sand ninja?" Sasuke practically spat.

I ignored him. "Shikamaru! Naruto! Are you guys okay?!"

"Untie us, Sakura-chan!" Naruto shouted. "Hurry!"

I attempted to run but my leg was still chained up to that _damn_ _tree._

A string of curse words dropped into my mind, all aimed at Sasuke. How is it that _all_ of our chakra was drained?

"This is all so _troublesome,"_ Shikamaru whined. "I don't even _care_ about Sasuke."

Sasuke smirked.

Gaara looked over at Sasuke, shaking his head slightly when he saw how psychotic he looked; blood dripping from his eyes, mangekyou sharingan activated, glaring like some kind of evil maniac, covered in blood and dirt, hair spiking rebelliously.

"Well," Gaara spoke. "I see now what path you have truly chosen."

Sasuke's death glare didn't waver.

"I don't have time for this," Sasuke said. His gaze caught mine. "I'm dealing with _her."_

Naruto, still tied up against the tree, struggling tirelessly, his chakra drained completely. "What the hell!" he growled. "Untie me you bastard!" Naruto had been holding back the whole time. That _idiot._ I knew for a fact that if he had actually tried his best none of us would be tied up right now.

"Naruto," Gaara sighed, dropping his head. "Moving around like that will not get us untied."

"Sasuke…" I whispered, moving back. "What are you doing?"

Naruto's eyes widened in realization as he stared at Sasuke in horror. "Sasuke!" he shouted. "Sasuke, you better not-"

Sasuke's arm was raised, a familiar blue electric-like chakra bursting out of his hand. Fear washed over me when I realized what it was.

"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled. "Sasuke, don't-"

"Chidori!"

**Don't hate me, alright? I know this chapter is short, but I had a major case of writer's block and I wrote this when I was exhausted and very sleepy. Please review. Love xx**


	8. Chapter 8

**OKAY! Hello there, THANK YOU REVIEWERS I love you, and here is the next chapter! **

**Chapter Eight xx**

"_SAKURA-CHAN!" _Naruto screamed. _"NO!"_

I closed my eyes and braced myself for the attack that was about to come. It didn't.

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief and I opened my eyes to see Neji in front of me, pushing Sasuke's arm in the other direction.

"What the fuck!" Sasuke shouted, glaring. His hate-filled eyes met mine.

"You were really going to kill me?" I whispered, scared for the life of me and my friends.

He didn't answer, but for a brief second pity flashed in his eyes, and I knew he wasn't fully evil just yet.

Neji looked Sasuke up and down and shook his head, sighing. "Hinata, untie everybody. We're leaving."

"What?" Sasuke snapped. "You're not going to fight?"

"I don't have time to fight," Neji replied simply. "And I'm not always looking for something to pour my hate onto, like you always do."

Sasuke should be famous for that glare of his.

"What the hell is going on here?" a familiar voice cried. We all looked over at Sai.

Oh. Bad timing, Sai. Bad timing.

Sasuke's anger seemed to increase tenfold. He turned and grabbed onto Sai's neck, lifting him. "This is that loser you went out with on a date?" he snarled, looking at me. He smirked. "What if I killed him right now?"

"Sasuke!" I shouted. "Don't! Put him down! He didn't do anything wrong!"

"I could kill him," Sasuke continued on. "And then he'd no longer be a bother to me."

_Bother? What has poor Sai ever done to you?_ I wanted to shout, but instead I said, "Sasuke, put him down. Please!"

Sasuke's grip on Sai's neck tightened. Sai began to choke.

"Sasuke-kun!" I screamed. Okay, I did _not_ mean to add the "kun" at the end, but whatever. Old habits are hard to forget. I ran to him and lost the logical part of my brain; I tackled him to the ground.

"Sakura-" Sasuke began, but his words were cut off when he landed on the ground and I stayed on top of him. "What the hell!" he demanded, looking at me, faces inches away. I was trying my best to ignore the way I was straddling his hips due to the fact that he almost killed us all, but it was pretty difficult not to pay attention to.

"Get off me," he seethed.

I shook my head. "Guys!" I shouted, looking over at everyone. "Leave! Now!"

"No way!" Naruto argued. "There's no way I'm going to-"

"Please, Naruto! I can handle this!" I assured him. "Just go!"

"Sakura…" Gaara stepped forward. "I don't think you should…"

"Just go, please!"

They seemed hesitant, but they eventually obliged and left.

"You know I can kill you, now that we're alone," Sasuke pointed out to me. "You just made a really stupid mistake."

"I know you _can_ kill me," I agreed. "But you won't."

He scoffed. "What makes you think I won't?"

_For one thing, you turned your sharingan off. For another, you are making no move to push me off of you._

I shrugged and leaned to whisper in his ear. How was it that, even though he was covered in blood, he smelled so good? "Sasuke_-kun,"_ I whispered, making sure to emphasize the "kun" so he wouldn't go rage on me. "You're calm now, aren't you?"

He didn't answer. I took that as a yes.

"Good," I continued. "I'm going to leave now and take care of my friends. You're not going to try to kill me, are you?"

Again, no answer. I leaned away from his ear and looked at his face, which was completely emotionless.

"Are you?" I pressed.

His gaze caught mine. He sat up on his elbows, still not pushing me off of him. His reposition made our faces slightly closer.

"Sasuke?" I asked. "Why aren't you answering?"

He looked at me again, and this time, in one swift movement, his lips caught mine. Surprise, desire and happiness drifted into me. My heart speed increased. I pressed myself against him. His lips were cool and tasted of blood, mint, and Sasuke. The kiss was slow and smooth, but very passionate and extremely satisfying. I felt a touch of his tongue, and my heart did a huge leap. I never thought he would kiss me. And I never thought it would be now, after he tried to kill me.

He pulled back, and this time I slid off of him willingly.

"Sasuke?" I asked as he walked away. "W-what was that?" I silently cursed myself for stuttering.

He stopped and turned to look at me. "You should go," he said. "Before I do something wrong."

"Like…kiss me again?"

He smirked but didn't answer. I opened my mouth to say more but he was already gone.

I tried to ignore the tingling sensation in my lips the whole walk home, but I couldn't. I really couldn't.

**XXXXXX**

"How are they?" Tenten asked, leaning on the wall beside Neji.

He nodded. "Fine. They're in the hospital. They'll be out in a couple of days."

She nodded as well and then blew out a sigh.

"Tenten?"

"Yes, Neji?"

"I'm…" he bit his lip. "Sorry that I didn't notice you liked me."

She shook her head. "No, no. I'm sorry that I got angry about that. I mean, you are a genius of course, but not when it comes to girls."

He frowned and stood in front of her. "I'm smart about everything."

"Not girls."

He scoffed. "I'm _smart_ about _girls_ too, Tenten."

She smiled. "Don't flatter yourself, Neji. You don't know anything about girls."

"I know _everything_ about girls. I know what they're thinking."

"Oh?" she asked. "So what am I thinking right now?"

He didn't answer; instead, he leaned down and pressed his lips against hers. Tenten made a small noise in her throat out of surprise, but it didn't take too long for her to kiss him back as hot as he was kissing her. She felt Neji's weight press her harder against the wall and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Neji smiled slightly in the middle of the kiss when he felt her heart beating rapidly, as if it were about to explode.

He pulled away after a couple of seconds and looked at her. "Was I right?"

Tenten was breathless. "About what?" she breathed.

"What you're thinking."

"O-oh," she was panting, mind and body still feeling electrocuted from the kiss. She couldn't think straight. "R-right. Well…"

"Hello, Tenten-chan," Hinata greeted.

"Hello…Hinata-chan," Tenten said in response. "I-have to go. I'm…tired. B-bye, Hinata." She swallowed before she said, "Bye, Neji."

He smirked at her and she left.

Hinata was quick to pick up on what was going on. "Did you two just…?"

Neji shrugged and grabbed her hand. "Let's go home."

Hinata squealed. "You and Tenten!"

"Shut it, Hinata."

"That's so cute! I knew that it would happen someday…"

For once, the petite girl could not keep her mouth shut.

"Shut _up."_

"Finally, finally, NejiTen!"

"Neji _what?"_ he asked.

"Your couple name, of course. NejiTen!"

He shook his head, growing frustrated. "Just keep quiet, Hinata."

"Okay, NejiTen."

**Short chapter, I know. This story is far from over, of course. Lots of other complications will be happening soon. Review please. Love xx**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello people, here is the next chapter. Hope y'all like it!**

**Chapter Nine xx**

"Wait…so let me get this straight; you're going on a date with _Gaara?"_ Ino asked.

"Not a _date, _Ino-pig," I said. "He invited me to grab some ramen as _friends."_

"Sounds like a date to me," she replied, propping her feet up on the table. "He's better for you, anyway. Maybe you can finally get over Sasuke."

I twitched. "We're not going on a date, and I _am_ over Sasuke."

Ino raised her eyebrows. "Of course you are," she said sarcastically.

I didn't answer. She could obviously see through my lies. Like hell I was over Sasuke.

"What happened last week, anyway?" she asked. "Everyone came back from fighting Sasuke that day and you weren't with them. You came back an hour later, and your face was all flushed." She paused. "Either you were trying not to cry, or you had sex."

I blushed crimson. "Ino! I did _not_ have sex with Sasuke!"

She shrugged. "Whatever you say."

I hadn't seen Sasuke since that day he kissed me. I went out into the forest a few times to accidentally-on-purpose bump into him, but he wasn't around. And that little house in the forest that he apparently lived in was empty.

There was a faint knock on the door and I immediately opened it.

"Naruto," I said. "Hello. Aren't you supposed to be in the hospital?"

"They let me out yesterday." He yawned. "Sakura-chan, I need to speak with you please."

I raised an eyebrow. He was being so formal. "Sure," I replied, stepping outside and closing the door behind me.

"It's about Sasuke."

I kept a neutral expression. "What about him?"

"Something happened when we left that day," he said firmly. "What was it?"

"W-what are you talking about?" I stammered.

"Sakura-chan, I'm being serious here," he told me. "Tell me what happened when we left. Did he hurt you?"

"No! No, he didn't."

"You've already lied to me before, Sakura-chan. Remember when you got stabbed and Hinata-chan and I found you that night? I know it was Sasuke that hurt you, and you knew it to, yet you lied."

The blood drained from my face and I went stiff. "How did you know?"

"I have my ways."

"Hmph," I replied. "Well, whatever. What's your point?"

"My point is if anything happened you need to tell me, Sakura-chan! This is serious! If Sasuke keeps falling further into darkness, eventually he'll be gone for good! We need to bring him back!"

"He didn't hurt me, Naruto," I said honestly. "I promise. And I promise if he does hurt me, I'll tell you."

He stood there for a couple of seconds and then sighed. "Alright, Sakura-chan. I trust you."

I contemplated telling him that Sasuke had kissed me, but thought better of it and mumbled a goodbye before departing to meet Gaara at the ramen stand.

**XXXXXX**

"Thanks for, you know, inviting me out to eat."

Gaara looked at me, his red hair separated at the spot on his forehead where the word _"love" _was etched in. He didn't answer for a moment.

"Sakura," he spoke. "I have to tell you the real reason I invited you here."

I blew out a sigh. I knew it.

"I need to talk to you about Sasuke."

I placed my head in my hands. That's what _everyone_ needed to talk to me about.

"He's very close to losing what's left of his good side…"

"I've had this conversation before," I said. "A lot of times, Gaara. I know what you're going to say; that we need to save him before it's too late, blah blah. Don't you think I already _know_ we have to save him? I'm-" I stopped.

"You're what?" he pressed.

_In love with him. _"Tired of having this conversation over and over again."

"Sakura," he said. "That's not what I was going to say."

I looked at him, surprised. "Then what?"

"I was going to ask if you still love him."

My eyes widened. "What? I-I don't-I mean, why do you want to know?"

"I…" he trailed off.

"Yes…?"

He didn't say another word. Instead, he turned to me and to my utter shock he _kissed _me.

_Kissed_ me!

I was too surprised to pull away. I mean, I didn't even really understand what was going on. My brain couldn't grasp the idea that _Gaara_ of all people _liked me._

I heard footsteps coming towards us, and I knew Gaara could hear it too because he pulled away. We glanced over at Neji, Tenten and Naruto running towards us.

"Sakura!" Tenten cried, breathless. "Hinata is missing!"

"_What?"_ I asked, jumping up from my seat.

"I went home," Neji explained. "And I looked for her. She wasn't there. We searched the whole _village._ We can't find her."

"Didn't she go out into the forest to be by the lake?" Gaara asked. We all looked at him and he shrugged. "That's what I heard her say."

"Well, then, let's go!" I exclaimed. I broke into a run and everyone followed close behind.

As we ran, we heard a loud scream.

"Hinata-sama!" Neji growled. I could feel the anger and worry radiating off of him.

_Don't worry, Hinata. We're coming._

**XXXXXX**

Sasuke's grip on Hinata's neck tightened. Blood trickled from her mouth.

"Where is she?" Sasuke seethed. "Where is Sakura?"

"She's still in the v-village," Hinata choked. "She will be coming back into the forest eventually."

"Get her. Tell her I'm looking for her. _And don't tell anybody else,_ or you'll regret it."

"S-Sasuke…please let go of my neck…I can't…breathe…"

For once, Sasuke had mercy and he released her. Hinata fell to the floor, gasping for breath, exhausted from the beat up she had received from Sasuke.

She looked up at him and met his empty eyes. "Naruto will bring you back to Konoha."

He glared at her. "No. No one will."

It took her some effort to stand up. Her knees were trembling. "N-Naruto-kun can do anything. And if he can't do it, Sakura-chan will."

His eyes narrowed. "Neither of them can do anything for me."

She held his gaze, determined. "Are you sure about that, Sasuke?" She thanked the heavens her voice didn't break.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. "Get out of my sight before I really do kill you."

Hinata wiped the blood off of her mouth and a sudden sharp pain attacked her ribs. She clutched onto her mid-section and dropped to the ground, crying out in pain.

Footsteps sounded nearby. Sasuke vanished.

"Hinata-sama!" Neji shouted, dropping to his knees and wrapping an arm around her supportively. "What the hell happened?"

Hinata looked in the direction where Sasuke had been standing. It had only taken him seconds to leave. She now believed what she knew Sakura believed; Sasuke hadn't completely turned evil. He hadn't killed her; he showed her mercy. They just needed to find his soft spot and bring him back, and Hinata knew what exactly what he was sensitive about. She saw a flash of pink and red dropping down in front of her and asking if she was okay. She remembered the look on Sasuke's face when she had mentioned the pink-haired girl.

_His sensitive side, _Hinata thought. _Sakura._

**Hope you liked this chapter. Reviews are appreciated. Love xx**


	10. Chapter 10

**Helloo! Thank you for the reviews, they make me happy. Enjoy the next chapter! I try to update as soon as I can.**

**Chapter Ten xx**

"For the billionth time, Neji-sama, I don't need to be taken to the hospital," Hinata declared, her voice not as shy as it usually is due to the fact that she was _irritated._

He pressed his lips together, not satisfied at all. "Your injuries are-"

"I'm fine. Trust me," she interrupted.

"Who did this to you, anyway, Hinata-chan?" Tenten asked.

"To be honest, it w-was…Sasuke." Hinata's voice had once again dropped to that shy, sweet girl tone.

Neji stood from his chair, rage consuming him. "I'll kill him," he seethed, heading for the door. Tenten grabbed his arm and tugged him back.

"Neji, _calm down._ Sakura and Gaara are already out looking for him. So sit your ass back down," Tenten ordered.

Neji looked at her, surprise covering the anger within him. Did Tenten just _demand_ he _sit his ass back down?_ Brave girl, telling him what to do. Nevertheless, he sat, frowning.

"What's Sakura going to do once she actually finds Sasuke?" Tenten asked.

Hinata shrugged. "I really don't know."

"It better be good," Neji snapped. "And he better not hurt her and Gaara."

"Since when did you care about Sakura and Gaara?" Tenten said, raising her eyebrows.

He shrugged. "I don't. But it just gives me another reason to go mercilessly murder him."

Tenten giggled and Neji gave her a look.

"What makes you think you can kill him?" Tenten asked. "Naruto couldn't even do it."

"Naruto was holding back when they fought," Neji pointed out. "He's a much better fighter than what he showed on that day. Plus, Naruto doesn't even want to kill Sasuke. He wants to bring him back to Konoha."

"Naruto still believes he will become Hokage one day," Tenten observed.

"He will be," Hinata said firmly. They both looked at her. She cleared her throat. "He really will be."

"Hinata, what were you doing out by the lake anyway?" Neji asked. "It was completely reckless of you to go out there alone."

"Looking for Sasuke," Hinata admitted. "I-I wanted to speak with him about Sakura-chan."

Tenten raised an eyebrow. "Why? Does he like her or something?"

Neji thought about it for a moment. "I suspect he does," he said. "It seems like it."

"But Sasuke is so heartless," Tenten said. "He totally zoned her out most of the time when he was still in Konoha. How could someone as cruel and cold as him like someone as sweet and kind as Sakura?"

"Opposites attract?" Neji guessed, shrugging. "Seriously. You and I are completely opposite. But I like you, right?"

Neji froze at what he just said. Hinata clamped a hand over her mouth to hide her laugh. Tenten gaped at him.

"You…like me?" Tenten asked, biting her lower lip.

"I didn't say that."

"Yes you did."

"No, I didn't."

"Yes you did!"

Neji sighed. "No, I didn't."

Tenten frowned. "Whatever you say, Neji. At least now I know you have a crush on me."

Neji gaped. "I _don't_ have a crush on you! I'm _Neji._ Neji _Hyuuga._ I don't _crush_ on people."

Tenten grinned at him. "Okay, sure. But you can't stay in denial for long, you know."

Neji grumbled something unintelligible and looked away.

Hinata giggled.

**XXXXXX**

"Let me guess; you're the one who hurt Hinata?" I asked, staring at the beautiful raven-haired boy in front of me.

"What's the sand boy doing here?" Sasuke asked, acknowledging Gaara with slight disgust.

Gaara stood there, not at all intimidated, arms crossed over his chest, his face blank.

"Sasuke, why did you do that to Hinata?" I said, stepping forward. Gaara grabbed my wrist and pulled me back, obviously afraid that Sasuke would try to kill me.

I thought I saw Sasuke twitch when Gaara touched me, but it must've been my imagination.

Sasuke shrugged. "I have my reasons."

I glanced at Gaara who was still standing there, emotionless.

"And anyway," Sasuke continued. "I need to speak with _you."_ He looked at me. _"Alone."_

"There's no way in hell I'm leaving you alone with her," Gaara said.

Sasuke cocked his head to the side. "I didn't hurt her last time, did I?" he asked, almost mocking him.

Gaara's blank face turned to anger. "Listen, you fucking creep. She doesn't-"

"Gaara," I mumbled, pulling him back. "Stop. Just go. I'll meet back with you soon."

"But he's-"

"It's okay. He won't hurt me. He's right. He didn't last time." I smiled and gave him a hug that I made sure felt very _friendly_ and nothing more.

He hugged me back and grumbled something before turning and leaving.

I turned to Sasuke. He looked steaming mad.

"What do you need, Sasuke?" I asked, stepping closer to him.

"I need to speak with you."

"Come back to Konoha," I said.

He shook his head. "No."

"Where's Orochimaru, Sasuke? I heard he's dead. You killed him, didn't you? So what's stopping you from coming back to me?"

"To you?"

"Uh…no. No. I meant the, um, village," I stammered.

"No, I heard what you said. You said coming back to _you."_

I shook my head. "It was a mistake."

"Sure it was."

I twitched. "What did you need from me?"

He shook his head. "I wanted to ask you to do me a favour. Come with me."

"What? No." I dug in my heels so he wouldn't pull me any further. "Where? And why?"

"You have to trust me," he said. "I can't tell you until we get there."

I pressed my lips together and counted to ten for no reason whatsoever. "Fine," I breathed. I followed him to wherever he was taking me. There was a small part of my brain telling me I made a huge mistake.

And that small part turned out to be right once I saw where we were.

**Uh-oh! Where did Sasuke take her? Sorry for the short chapter. Bear with me here I'm trying my best. Review please. Love xx**


	11. Chapter 11

**Thank you for the reviews, every time I read new ones I feel so bad for not updating so I can't stop thinking about updating and I end up writing these as quick as I can! Anyway, here is the next chapter. Enjoy babes!**

**Chapter Eleven xx**

"Who's the girl?"

I peered at the man who was speaking. He was tall, broad-shouldered, and as wide as a door. He looked very intimidating, but Sasuke didn't seem afraid at all.

"Why do you care what her name is?" Sasuke asked coldly. "You said you needed a med ninja, so I found you one."

"What?" I hissed. "Sasuke!"

"You agreed to do me a favour," he whispered back. "I just need you to heal someone for him."

"So you can help me, girl?" the man asked. He began to circle me, looking me up and down. He was a bit too close for my taste, and apparently for Sasuke's taste too because he grabbed the back of the man's shirt and pulled him away from me.

"You have some guts to touch me, Sasuke," the man told him. "I must say thank you for dropping her off to me. You can go now."

Sasuke burst out laughing, but the laugh was humourless. It was bitter. It actually sounded a bit sadistic. "That's hilarious. As if I'm actually going to leave her with _you. _Wherever you're going, I'm coming."

The man glared at Sasuke for a few seconds, and then shook his head and sighed. "Fine. But you won't like where we're going."

_Damn it._

I cleared my throat and stepped forward. "What if I refuse to help you?"

Sasuke tugged me back and his eyes warned me to shut up, but I just gave him a look that said, _I know what I'm doing._

Even though I obviously didn't know what I was doing. In fact, I had no clue. About anything. Who was this guy? And how did Sasuke know him? And why was _Sasuke_ doing favours for him anyway?

"Who are you?" I asked the man.

He stared at me. "You're a brave girl, aren't you? If you refuse to do what I ask, you will be punished severely. You do not need to know my name, girl."

I scoffed and crossed my arms. "If you don't tell me who you are I won't be doing anything for you."

The man stared at me and Sasuke swore at me under his breath.

"Very well. Men, take her away."

Three bulky-looking men stepped out and grabbed me.

I shrieked. "Sasuke! Do something!"

But Sasuke did absolutely nothing. He just stood there and watched as the men held me firmly and took me away.

**XXXXXX**

"I'm glad you're okay, Hinata-chan," Naruto said, sitting beside her on the bed. "I was worried about you."

Hinata blushed. "N-no need to be worried about me, Naruto-kun."

Naruto leaned over and kissed her sweetly. "I always worry about you."

Hinata opened her mouth to say something but Naruto kissed her again, a bit roughly this time. They continued to kiss until it turned into a full make-out session. Lost in the sensation of each other's lips and skin, they didn't hear the door open behind them.

"Naruto," Neji seethed. "Get the hell _off_ my cousin_ now!"_

Naruto jumped back. "Oh, Neji…what's up?" he asked, smiling nervously.

Neji, clearly pissed off, did not greet Naruto back. "What the hell?" Neji snapped. "I walk in to find my cousin practically having sex with _you_ of all people!"

"N-Neji!" Hinata exclaimed, blushing. "We w-were not having _sex."_

"Yeah, come on, Neji," Naruto said. "Loosen up. Just because you've never kissed a girl-"

Neji crossed his arms and scoffed. "Who says I haven't?"

Naruto grinned. "Give me a break, Neji. Everyone knows you haven't."

"Yes I have," he snapped.

"Yeah, sure you have," Naruto replied sarcastically.

"I _have_ you idiot."

"Okay. Prove it, genius."

Neji refused to take the bait. "I don't have to prove anything to _you."_ Neji turned to leave, but stopped abruptly. "I'll be back," he said. "Don't you dare lay a finger on Hinata."

Naruto grinned and with that, Neji was gone.

**XXXXXX**

_Kissing,___Neji thought. _Why did Naruto have to remind me about kissing girls?_

The only girl on his mind right now was Tenten. And, boy, did he want to kiss her again.

So imagine his surprise when Tenten's hand was suddenly on his chest, bringing him to a stop.

"Jeez," she said. "Did I really have to touch you to get you to stop walking?"

"Sorry."

_Neji apologizing? Something must be wrong with him,_ Tenten thought. "So, what are you thinking about that has got you all daydream-y and off?"

_You._ "Nothing."

"Well, I've been thinking about something."

Neji raised his eyebrows. "What have you been thinking about?"

Tenten stood on her tiptoes and covered his lips with hers. She kissed him for a long time, and it was so passionate yet, oddly, bittersweet, as if what they had was true (and it was), but they both knew it wouldn't last for long, even if it was supposed to. As if something was going to get in their way and call this love forbidden.

She pulled away. "Sorry," she said. "I had to."

"Don't be sorry," Neji replied, and he almost blushed at the way he was speaking. Neji _Hyuuga. _Almost _blushing._

Today was just full of surprises.

**XXXXXX**

"I can't believe you did this."

"I'm not the one who did it," Sasuke replied.

"You let them take me away, Sasuke!" I yelled. "You stood there and watched!"

Sasuke looked at me, his expression blank, as fucking usual. "I'm sorry," he said flatly. He didn't sound the least bit sorry.

"Then unchain me you fucking bastard!" I shouted, struggling with the chains on my hands and legs.

He looked away. "I can't."

"Who's making you do this?" I cried. "I thought Orochimaru died!"

"No one is making me do this, Sakura. I'm doing this for me. For my own reasons."

I swore at him with every word I knew and ordered him to get the hell out of my face. He pressed his lips together and walked out, closing the massive metal door behind him gently. Well, as gently as Sasuke could.

I glanced around the room. It was about the size of a walk in closet. It was entirely made of metal; the walls were rusting, the floor was cold, and I was so full of anger I felt like breaking Sasuke's neck.

That _bastard_ had let those stupid men take me away and lock me up in here. Not to mention I was _freezing_ and _tired_ and _hungry_.

I fought against the chains for a few minutes, pulling at them with all my strength. The cold metal bit into my skin, and I knew they were going to leave marks. I could already feel the bruises forming, and the pain stretching into my skin, but I was desperate and paranoid. I just wanted to get _out._ Did I mention I was claustrophobic?

_I cannot handle small spaces! I can't handle this!_

A scream ripped out of my throat. My mind swirled and I dropped to my knees, the shriek booming from my lips refusing to stop.

But, eventually, I had to. My screams ended in a choked sob and I sat there, on my knees, crying my eyes out.

I heard the door open but I didn't bother to look up and see who it was. At this point, I didn't care who saw me cry.

"Sakura?"

Okay, I have to be honest with you; Sasuke's voice was very refreshing to hear after that psychotic scene. I looked up at him, tears streaming down my face.

"Alright," he said. "Alright, you're not staying here." He shook his head and walked up to me, grabbing the chains and literally _ripping_ them apart with his hands. "There's no way I'm letting you stay here."

He grabbed my waist and lifted me bridal style, carrying me out of the cell and taking me to who knows where. I needed to ask him questions. I needed him to tell me everything. I needed him to get me out of here. I needed _him,_ period. And that was pretty pathetic, considering the pain he's caused me.

But once I felt him drop me on a nice, soft bed and cover me with a beautifully warm blanket, I decided all my questions and needs would be answered tomorrow. What I wanted right now was _sleep._

I felt his warm lips on mine for a few seconds before he pulled away, and I drifted into the blissful darkness of sleep.

**Hope you liked this chapter. It took me kind of long. Anyway, I'll update more soon. Review please. Love xx**


	12. Chapter 12

**Hi, everyone! Thank you for all the reviews, they make me happy and they definitely motivate me to write more. Hope you like this chapter!**

**Chapter Twelve xx**

"No," I heard Sasuke say. "Did you see where you put her? What kind of a fucking cell was that? There's no way I'm letting you put her back in there. She's staying _here."_

I kept my eyes closed, eavesdropping on the conversation.

"I thought you were heartless, boy?" a man said. I recognized his voice as the man from yesterday. "Since when did you start caring about people?"

"I don't care about people," Sasuke snapped. "She was an old teammate of mine."

"I see," the man replied. "So you have only one unbroken bond left, and it is with this girl?"

I heard a loud thud and the man choking. "Listen," Sasuke hissed. "Stop asking me questions. I brought you a med ninja, and that's all I'm going to do for you. She's stubborn, but that's your problem. If she won't do it for you, that's too bad, but she's not going to stay in that cell. The girl stays here with me. No discussions."

"Let-go-of-my-neck!" the man choked.

I heard a thump and knew Sasuke had released him.

"Fine," the man said, voice rasping. "She will stay here. I'll give her three days to decide whether or not she will be following my orders. After that, there will be severe consequences."

The door slammed shut and I opened my eyes and swung my legs out of bed. "Good morning," I said. Sasuke turned to look at me.

"Go back to sleep."

I blinked at him. "I'm not tired."

"I'm leaving," he said. "Don't leave this room, unless you want to end up back that cell. Understand?"

"Are we…at your house?" I asked, glancing around. His blanket was black, along with his pillow and sheets. The house was small; it only had one bedroom, which was this one. Sasuke had a shelf that held _many_ books, all of which had plain, black covers. The carpet was black. The walls were black. What a depressing room.

Sasuke nodded. "Like I said, don't leave unless you want to end up in that place again."

"Wait!" I called, leaping out of bed. The carpet felt so nice and fuzzy under my toes. "Where are you going?"

He pressed his lips together and paused, as if deciding whether or not he should answer me. "Training," he said. "Lock the door, and don't let anyone in." He turned and walked away.

I heard the front door slam shut, and I decided to shower and brush my teeth and make myself breakfast.

Under the shower, it was nice and hot. The steam was relaxing, and I enjoyed the way the water was beating down on me soothingly. I noticed the bruises and cuts all along my arms from yesterday's attempted jail-break. They were sore to the touch, but I'd been through worse. I shut off the shower and stepped out.

I noticed my dirty, sweaty clothes and noted that there was no way in hell I'd be putting those back on.

I blew out a sigh and trudged back into Sasuke's room, towel wrapped around me. I opened his drawers and searched through his stuff, looking for something I could wear. Of course, most of his clothes consisted of blue and black and the occasional red or purple. I grabbed a black t-shirt and threw it on. It was huge; the length extended up to my thigh.

Good enough. I left to go make myself breakfast with no pants. It's not like I could fit into any of his pants, anyway.

**XXXXXX**

Sasuke trained. For hours. Panting and sickly tired, he wanted nothing more than to go home and wash the sweat and dirt off his body. He was just about to do so when he heard a familiar voice say,

"Teme."

Sasuke froze and turned around, glaring already. "Naruto," Sasuke greeted. "What do you want?"

"I haven't given up on you, Sasuke. One day I'm going to bring you back."

Sasuke was worn out and completely exhausted. He was in no mood for this conversation. Rain poured down from the sky, soaking them both. "Forget it, Naruto. It won't happen." He turned to leave.

"Where's Sakura-chan?" Naruto called. Sasuke stopped and stiffened. He looked at Naruto.

"She's safe," he answered. "Don't worry."

"She's with you," Naruto said. "Why is she with you?"

"None of your business," Sasuke replied.

"Sasuke!" Naruto shouted. "If you hurt her, I swear I'll-"

"Naruto," he said sharply. "I said don't worry about it."

Naruto's face softened. "You wouldn't hurt her, would you, teme?"

Sasuke looked away so Naruto wouldn't see his expression. Sasuke felt pain. Emotional pain. He wouldn't hurt her physically, not if he could control himself. But emotionally? He wasn't so sure. He always hurt her, even when he didn't mean to.

"I have to go, dobe," Sasuke spoke, surprising both Naruto and himself by calling Naruto _dobe._

"I'll see you again, soon, teme," Naruto warned. "I'll bring you back. Don't you forget it!"

Sasuke didn't say anything. His throat had gone dry. He heard thunder off in the distance, but he couldn't feel anything except _pain._ For the first time in years, Sasuke was feeling something other than hatred and vengeance. Why wouldn't Naruto give up on him? What was wrong with his old teammates? Didn't they see that he didn't want to go back to Konoha? Sorrow filled his heart. But he wouldn't cry. He refused to cry.

He didn't want to care about Naruto. He didn't want to care about Sakura.

But he couldn't help the tiny affection he still felt towards the two of them. He needed to vaporize that emotion. He needed it wiped away from his mind.

Sasuke looked up at the dark, raining, gloomy sky. Thoughts of his brother drifted into his brain, and suddenly, for the second time today, he felt like crying. Shaking his head, he decided to do his best to completely break the bonds left between him and his teammates, for good this time.

He began to make his way back, hoping Sakura would agree to tend to his wounds that he was so painfully aware of the whole walk home.

**XXXXXX**

"Hinata-sama," Neji called. "Where is Tenten?"

"I don't know," she called back. "I haven't seen her all day. I invited her yesterday to sleep over here, and I think she's been asleep in her room all day."

"Are you sure?"

"Either that or she left."

Neji stood up and walked over to the guest room, knocking gently on the door. No answer. He turned the doorknob, but it was locked. He frowned.

"Tenten?" he said. "Can you open the door?"

Still no answer.

Hinata appeared from her bedroom. "Maybe she went home."

"If she went home, why would the door be locked?"

Hinata bit her nails, something she always did when she was nervous. "Tenten?" she asked hesitantly. "May we please come in?"

Still no answer from the girl.

Neji grew irritated. "This is pathetic. Tenten, if you don't open the door I'm breaking it!"

She didn't reply, so Neji lifted his foot and in one swift movement he kicked the door down.

Hinata gasped. Neji's face grew paler than it already was, if that was possible.

"Tenten…?" Hinata whispered. She gazed at the bed Tenten was lying in, which was covered in blood. Tenten's body lay there, motionless, also covered in dried-up blood.

"Tenten!" Hinata said, louder this time. She began to sob. "No!"

Neji's emotions were everywhere; from anger, to shock, to sorrow, to pain, to more anger.

"_Tenten!"_ Neji shouted. Neji ran to her and put his hand over her heart. She wasn't breathing; her heart beat was faint.

_This can't be happening,_ he thought. _Please…don't die, Tenten._

"Don't die, Tenten! _Don't die!"_

**There ya go! Did you like it? It took me a while to write, especially because I had to have everything plotted out before I could write it down. Review please. Love xx**


	13. Chapter 13

**Thank you for the reviews and here is the next chapter.**

**Chapter Thirteen xx**

"Ouch."

"Sorry," I said, wrapping the bandages around his arm, trying to be gentler. When Sasuke asked me to take care of his injuries, I couldn't say no. He was Sasuke-kun after all, and watching him in pain bothered the life out of me.

"Why don't you just let me heal them?" I asked.

"No," he said, shaking his head. "Don't."

Figuring this was a bit odd, I asked him why. I didn't get an answer, obviously.

"Okay," I said. "Your arm is finished. Take off your shirt."

He stared at me and raised his eyebrows.

I sighed. "Take off your shirt so I can help your _wounds,_ Sasuke-kun. I'm not trying to get you to do it for my benefit."

He slipped his shirt off without another question. I tried not to stare at his abs. In fact, I tried not to stare at his perfectly sculpted body altogether, so I settled my gaze on his wound, which was a _huge_ and deep cut in the middle of his stomach.

"How the hell did you get this from training?" I asked.

He shrugged, and I began to wrap a bandage around it, hoping my cool fingers against his skin didn't bother him. But I felt him go stiff under my touch.

"Am I hurting you?"

"No," he said through gritted teeth. "Just hurry up."

How fast did he expect me to go? I was doing the best I could. After about a minute or so, I felt Sasuke's hand reach out and grab my wrist.

"Stop," he told me. "Stop."

I stared at him. I let the free hand that he wasn't grasping move to his chest and rest there.

He closed his eyes for a few seconds. "Just heal it."

I nodded and moved my hands to the wound. It healed quickly, and once that was over Sasuke stood up.

"Wait," I called. "Where are you going?"

"Shower," he replied, still walking. I got up and ran in front of him, blocking his path. "What are you doing?" he asked, annoyed.

"You could at least say _thank you,"_ I huffed.

"Just move, Sakura."

I crossed my arms defiantly.

"Fine," he hissed. _"Thank you."_

He said it so bitterly, as if he couldn't stand to say it at all.

"Say it nicely," I told him.

"…You're kidding me, aren't you?"

I shook my head and annoyance flashed in his eyes.

"I said it once," he snapped. "I'm not going to say it again."

"Then you're not going to shower," I replied. "Until you say it."

He muttered something under his breath and I placed my hands on his chest and stood on my tiptoes. "What was that, Sasuke_-kun?"_

"Sakura, don't touch me."

I pouted. "Why not?"

"Because-" he stopped, as if waiting for his brain to give him an excuse. "Because-"

"Because _what?"_ I teased.

His lips were on mine all of a sudden, and he was kissing me deeply, as if it would be our last kiss and he was drowning and the only way to stop himself was to kiss me. I pressed myself against him, knowing he could hear my heart racing, but not caring whatsoever. I wanted him to wrap his arms around me, something I had never felt Sasuke do. I pressed himself even harder against him, hoping he would get the damn message and put his arms around me.

He didn't, though. I pushed him up against the wall and kept kissing him, and I could've sworn I heard him moan my name when I kissed his neck, but I wasn't too sure.

Why won't he touch me? I could feel his lips kissing me so sweetly; I'd never been kissed this way. But his arms wouldn't budge. He refused to touch me.

I pulled away from him and smiled sheepishly.

"That's why," he breathed.

"W-why what?" I stammered, mind reeling from that amazing kiss.

"You can't touch me," he explained. "Because _that's _what I'm tempted to do."

_So that's why he'd wanted me to just hurry up and heal him. So I wouldn't touch him any further._

"Well…" I said. "Guess that plan backfired, huh?"

"Sakura, we can't do this."

"Do what?" I asked innocently.

"You know _what,"_ he said. "I told you I've broken my bonds with everyone. Except, obviously, _you._ But that needs to stop now."

"You don't like kissing me?"

To my complete and utter shock, there was a faint pink line on his cheeks. Sasuke Uchiha was _blushing._

"I didn't say that," he said. "Look, Sakura. If I'm going to restore my clan, I-"

"That's what you want to do, huh?" I asked. "Now that Itachi and Orochimaru are dead you want to restore your clan?"

He shrugged and looked away. "Yeah. So?"

"That requires you getting married," I observed. "And having sex."

"So? What's your point?" he snapped.

"Is it going to be with that slutty red-head?"

Disgust took over his features. "Hell no."

"Then who is it going to be?"

We stood in silence for several moments. His gaze turned to me. "You."

To be honest, I wasn't expecting that at all. "M-me?"

He nodded. "I want you to do it. You are the only one I'd be comfortable with, considering I hate everyone else."

"You love me?"

He paused. "I don't hate you."

So he doesn't love me, but he doesn't hate me. Good to know, I guess.

"S-Sasuke-kun, I can't…"

"Why not?" he asked.

"I mean, getting married is a huge deal, a-and we can't have s-sex before we even get married." I was trying to think of an excuse, any excuse to get him to reconsider. I was so nervous.

"Fine," he said. "Marry me then, Sakura."

My jaw dropped.

"_What?"_ I asked, frozen in spot.

"You heard me," he said. "Marry me."

_What a nice way to ask,_ I wanted to say sarcastically, but I couldn't. My breath was caught in my throat.

"Sasuke," I croaked. "I won't marry you until you come back to Konoha."

His expression turned angry. "Sakura, don't-"

"It's give and take, Sasuke," I interrupted. "I'll help you restore your clan if you come back to Konoha. And you have to promise you won't leave again."

**Regular POV**

_Promise?_ Sasuke thought. He almost smiled. He had no problem breaking promises. He'd come back, sure. But he was going to leave the second Sakura did what he wanted. He didn't want to be so cruel, but that was who he was, and that's what had to be done.

Sasuke nodded in agreement and Sakura kissed him slowly. He returned the kiss, knowing all too well how much he enjoyed the feeling of her lips on his. When they pulled away, Sakura smiled, thinking she had gotten what she wanted. He almost felt guilt knowing what he was about to do.

_Almost_ felt guilt. But not quite.

**Yeah, I know. All SasuSaku here. I wanted to leave you guys waiting for another chapter to see what happened to Tenten. Hehe. Don't hate me, though. The next chapter you'll see everything. Love xx**


	14. Chapter 14

**Hello you lovely reviewers. Don't hate me, but Tenten's part of the story won't show up until the next chapter. I know I said I'd explain everything here, but I've decided to wait another chapter. Anyway, I hope you like this one!**

**Chapter Fourteen xx**

"You may now kiss the bride."

I wheeled around and smacked Naruto in the face. "This isn't funny!" I fumed.

He stifled a laugh. "It kind of is, Sakura-chan. I mean, you've been in love with him for so long. You still are. He came back like a week ago and you two have this huge announcement that you're getting married, and now you're telling me he doesn't even love you? And you're still going to marry him?"

I crossed my arms defensively. "You can't tell _anyone, _Naruto! You have to promise you won't!"

"Okay, okay, jeez. I promise I won't tell anyone that you're marrying a guy who doesn't love you."

I twitched. "We made a deal. If he comes back to Konoha I'd help restore his clan. He came back so now I have to marry him _and_ make his babies." I popped a chip into my mouth.

"Shouldn't you be happy?" he asked. "I thought you loved him."

"I do," I replied, sighing. "But I don't want to do this if it's not real. I want it to be _real._ I want him to actually _love_ me like I love him."

Naruto leaned back on the couch and propped his feet up. "Well, I'm going to ask Hinata-chan to marry me."

Just like that, my troubled feelings were washed away. I brightened up. "Naruto!" I squealed, hugging him. "That's so great!"

"Do you think she'll say yes?" he asked nervously.

"Of course she will!" I cried. "She's in love with you! She's been in love with you for years!" I clapped my hands together and giggled. "That's so amazing. Hinata better ask me to be a bridesmaid."

"I'm going to ask Sasuke-teme to be the best man," he said. Truly happy for my best friend, I grinned at him. He grinned back.

"By the way," I began. "Where is Hinata-chan? I haven't seen her in a while."

Naruto frowned. "I saw her a few days ago. She was having some kind of sleepover thing with Tenten. I guess them two are busy having fun and doing…whatever girls do."

I shrugged. "Yeah. Probably. I can't shake the feeling that something's wrong, though."

Naruto sighed. "Me neither. But there's nothing to worry about."

Thinking he was right, I relaxed onto the couch and we sat there, eating chips, staring at nothing.

**XXXXXX**

I stared at myself in the mirror. I guess I did look good; all the girls kept gushing about how 'gorgeous' I was. My short hair was up, and my white wedding dress was beautiful to say the least.

I sighed. "Are you sure I look okay?"

"You look amazing," Ino gushed. "So amazing!"

"Where's Hinata?" I asked, growing frustrated. "And Tenten and Neji?"

Ino shrugged. "I called them but none of them would pick up."

I let out another sigh and Ino raised her eyebrows. "You don't seem very happy, Sakura," Ino pointed out. "Don't you want to marry Sasuke?"

I smiled, hoping she wouldn't be able to tell it was fake. "Of course I do. I'm just a bit…nervous, that's all."

Ino grinned. "That's understandable. I'll be right back; I have to go get the guests seated in the right spots."

I glanced at myself in the mirror again and closed my eyes. I was really doing this. I was really going to marry a man who didn't love me. I was in love with Sasuke and he wanted my help. That should've been reason enough to be okay about doing this…but it still didn't feel okay to be doing this.

I turned around and yelped when I saw Sasuke standing there.

"Sasuke-kun, you're not supposed to see a bride before the wedding," I scolded.

"I don't even want to do this big wedding," he reminded me.

I thought about that. I had begged him to, if he was going to actually make me marry him, at least give me a proper wedding, with family and friends watching, like I'd always dreamed my wedding would be.

Then again, I'd always dreamed my wedding would be with a man who actually loves me.

Look how that turned out.

Anyway, after a few hours of pleading with him, he had finally caved.

"It's starting soon," he told me. "I have to go."

"Sasuke…" I began.

He looked at me.

"I don't think I can do this," I managed, fixing my dress.

His eyes narrowed. "Why?"

I let out a trembling sigh. "I-I don't know if I can marry someone who doesn't love me."

Sasuke stared at me for a moment. "You told me you would always be there for me," he said. "You told me you'd be there when I needed you. I need you now. How can you leave me?"

I froze at the truth in his words. I hated this. I hated how he was using my words against me. I hated how guilty he was making me feel. I hated how beautiful he looked in a tuxedo.

**XXXXXX**

"Do you take the lovely Haruno Sakura as your wife?"

"I do," Sasuke said, his voice gruff. I could've sworn I saw him slightly roll his eyes.

"And do you take Uchiha Sasuke as your husband?"

"I…do," I croaked. I looked out into the crowd of people. I caught Naruto's eyes. Only he knew the truth. His face was blank, almost angry. He knew that Sasuke did not love me. Everyone else was smiling at us, thinking this was true love. And it was, on my part.

"You may now kiss the bride."

I swallowed and averted my gaze away from the crowd and back to Sasuke. He seemed hesitant, and so I impatiently grabbed his jacket lapels and kissed him just to hurry up and get it over with. Of course, the feeling of his lips on mine made me feel alive and warm and comfortable but I kind of figured the feeling wasn't mutual. I pulled away and everyone began to cheer and clap.

I smiled and greeted everyone at the party, thanking them when they congratulated me on being 'the first girl that Sasuke Uchiha ever had feelings for.'

Yeah, right.

**Like I said, sorry for no Tenten. And I know this chapter isn't good, but it will get better I swear. Tenten and Neji and Hinata will be in the next chapter, I promise! Review please! Love xx**


	15. Chapter 15

**Here is the next chapter. Thank you for reviewing. As promised, Tenten's part of the story is here. Enjoy babes.**

**Chapter Fifteen xx**

"Her injuries are serious," the nurse said firmly. "We will do everything we can to help her, and if it doesn't work…"

"_What?"_ Neji snapped. "What the hell do you mean _if _it doesn't work? It has to work._"_

"Well, as I said, her wounds are fatal. Are you sure you two have no idea who did this?" the nurse asked.

Hinata shook her head. "Tenten doesn't have any enemies, so there's no one we suspect."

A thought crossed Neji's mind. The invisible thing that had attempted to drag Tenten away a few weeks ago…that could be the attacker. He decided to keep this thought to himself. Hinata did not need to be dragged into this.

"Neji-nii-san," Hinata said. "We've been here for days. L-let's go."

Neji hesitated, but eventually obliged and followed Hinata out the door. They were walking home slowly when they heard their names being called.

They turned around. Neji frowned. Sakura? Why was she wearing a wedding dress?

Hinata gasped. "Sakura-chan, did you…?"

Sakura reached them, breathless from running. "You idiots!" she seethed. "I've been trying to contact you for days to invite you to the wedding! Where the hell have you been?"

"Something happened with Tenten," Neji explained. "She was attacked. We were with her in the hospital."

"Attacked by whom?" Sakura asked.

They shrugged and Sakura continued to pant.

"Sakura-chan!" Hinata exclaimed. "Who did you get married to?!"

"Well…" Sakura blushed. "Sasuke-kun."

"What?" Neji asked, shocked. "Sasuke is back in Konoha?"

"You got married to _Sasuke?"_ Hinata cried. "Oh, Sakura-chan!" She threw her arms around the pink-haired bride in a bear hug. "That's so great! I'm so happy for you!"

"Thank you, Hinata-chan," Sakura mumbled. Neji noticed that she didn't seem as happy as she should be.

"So where is the Uchiha?" Neji asked.

"Oh, he's at home."

"You two already found a place to stay?"

Sakura hesitated for a moment, as if carefully inspecting her words before speaking. "Yes, we did."

A moment went by before anyone said anything.

"Well, I better go," Sakura spoke, breaking the silence. "This dress is irritating me. Are you two going to visit Tenten tonight?"

They both nodded. "I will meet you in the morning," Sakura said. "Have a nice night, you two."

She walked away, leaving an awkward vibe in her place.

**XXXXXX**

"Sakura."

I turned around and looked at Sasuke, blushing crimson when I saw that he had no shirt on.

His gaze moved down to my clothes. "Are you wearing my shirt?" he asked.

I glanced down at the only thing I was wearing; Sasuke's black t-shirt.

"Yeah," I replied, looking at him again. "Is there a problem?"

"Why aren't you wearing your own clothes?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Because if I wear your shirt than I don't have to wear pants," I explained. I turned back to the stove and continued to cook. "I'm making bacon," I said. "Do you want some?"

"It's midnight."

"So? I can't make bacon at night?"

He came up from behind me and suddenly he was dangerously close, almost pressed up against me, looking over my shoulder at the bacon.

"Hn."

I rolled my eyes. "Is that a yes or a no?"

He didn't answer so I sighed. "Stop being such a baby, Sasuke-kun. Do you want bacon or not? I bought us tomatoes as well."

When he didn't reply I turned my head slightly to look at him. His face was so close, and to my shock, he was smiling.

Smiling. At the thought of tomatoes. This coming from a man who has murdered tons of people with no mercy.

"Are you…daydreaming about _tomatoes?"_ I asked, stifling a giggle.

He stopped smiling and averted his attention away from the bacon to look at me. "I don't know what you're talking about."

I burst out laughing. "Do all _avengers_ daydream about tomatoes?"

Sasuke crossed his arms defensively and glared at me. "I wasn't daydreaming about anything. I don't _daydream."_

"Okay, tomatoes."

His eyes narrowed and I giggled again.

I finished cooking the bacon and then put them all on a plate and placed it on the table. Sasuke sat, still looking very sexy shirtless, and began to eat.

"So, Sasuke…" I began, sitting down across from him. "About this restoring clan thing…"

He looked up at me. I pressed my lips together, nervousness taking over. Was I really going to have a conversation with Sasuke about sex?

"Uh…never mind," I said quickly, grabbing the bacon in his hand and taking a bite.

He glanced down at his now empty hand and then peered at me curiously. "Soon," was all he said, answering the unspoken question.

I let out a tiny breath and watched him take a bite of his bacon. Reaching over, I grabbed that out of his hand as well and finished it off for him, just for fun.

"Are you going to keep stealing the bacon from me?" he asked.

I shrugged. "Depends."

He raised his eyebrows. "On what?"

I leaned over the table and pressed my lips against his, kissing him slowly and as seductively as I could manage. I'm betting it's pretty difficult to seduce someone like Sasuke Uchiha, but I'm sure I'll eventually get it done.

"Sakura," he said against my lips.

"Uh huh?" I mumbled, still kissing him.

"Are you trying to seduce me?"

I pulled away a little and smiled at him. "Is it working?"

His glare returned. He stared at me for a moment. "A little," he admitted.

I grinned and slammed my lips against his again. I placed my hand on his chest, right where his heart was. I let my tongue brush his and got a huge dose of satisfaction when I felt his heart thud faster.

Sasuke pulled away, panting.

I made my way around the table and sat on his lap.

"What," he began, still breathless, "are you doing?"

Somehow, we ended up kissing again. My hands were everywhere; roaming his body, tangling in his hair, brushing his cheeks. His hands, however, stayed by their sides, as usual.

We continued to kiss, and we eventually ended up in his room.

I don't think I need to say it, since it's pretty obvious we were now both naked, under the covers.

"Are you ready?" he breathed into my ear.

I nodded, even though I wasn't quite sure. _"Soon,"_ Sasuke had said earlier. I didn't think it was going to be tonight.

I was going to be pregnant with Sasuke's baby in the morning.

But I still felt as though something terrible was going to happen.

**Don't hate me. This chapter was boring, but the next chapter won't be, I promise. Review please, it motivates me to write! Love xx**


	16. Chapter 16

**Hello! I'm sorry this chapter is short, but it's all SasuSaku and this was all I had in mind for this scene. I hope you like it. Thank you for reviewing. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Sixteen xx**

I opened my eyes slowly and stretched. "Sasuke-kun?" I mumbled, turning over to see his part of the bed empty. I bolted upright and checked the time. Two in the morning. I glanced around, panicked.

I froze when I saw his drawers opened and empty, his backpack missing.

_No. No. This can't be happening. Not again. _

I jumped out of bed and grabbed a robe, throwing it on. I left the house just like that; barefoot in a nightgown and a robe. I ran through the rain as if my life depended on it.

And at this particular moment, it did. I can't live without him.

I can't let him go.

**XXXXXX**

I saw him, walking out of the village. The rain was pouring heavily, and my bare feet splashed in the puddles as I walked over to him. He seemed to have sensed that it was me approaching him, because he stopped and froze.

"Why?" I croaked out, tears spilling down my cheeks, mixing with the rain. Thunder sounded in the distance.

He didn't answer. I was used to that, but I wouldn't allow it this time.

"_Why,_ Sasuke?" I said, voice growing louder. "Why are you leaving me again?"

More thunder. The rain was getting heavier, and the night was growing colder and darker.

"You promised!" I screamed. "You promised you'd stay if I did what you wanted! I'm _pregnant,_ Sasuke! How are you going to leave me now, when I need you most?" I began to cry, all the anger and sadness and pain he ever brought to me being poured out in these pathetic sobs. "I needed you that night, Sasuke. I needed you that first time you left. You can't just leave me again! Not now! Not when we're married! Your _child_ is inside me, for God's sakes! You can't go!"

"Sakura…"

"Were you planning this the whole time?" I cried. "Was this your plan from the beginning? To make me marry you, get me pregnant and then just pack up and go?"

He didn't reply, but I already knew the answer.

The sky was dark, reflecting all my feelings; anger, sorrow, pain, rage. All of which Sasuke had bestowed upon me. And yet, somewhere deep inside me, there was still love. Love for this cruel man who did nothing but give me agony. Love. I can't bear to watch him leave me again.

He turned around to face me.

His black, lonely eyes met mine.

I swallowed.

"Sakura…" he began again.

"I love you, Sasuke," I croaked. "I love you _so much._ I can't watch you do this to me again. It was just _so painful_ the first time. I'll do anything for you, Sasuke."

_Pleading with Sasuke to stay. Whoa. Déjà vu._

I began to cry again. "Please, Sasuke! You can't just leave me here alone! How am I going to raise this baby without his father? How are you going to leave your child? How are you going to leave your…wife, Sasuke? How?"

"I can't stay here in Konoha, Sakura," he said. "I can't. I don't belong here."

"We had a deal!" I cried. "I gave up everything for you! All you have to do is stay here!"

He shook his head. "Then come live with me at my house," he said. "That house in the woods. We can go there, Sakura."

I shook my head, just as stubborn as him. "No!" I shouted. "You promised me something, and you have to do it!"

"Love does nothing but bring you pain," he told me. "Remember, Sakura?"

"You have nothing to worry about!" I replied. "You don't love me! No feelings, no pain. So stay with me!"

"That's the problem," he said, voice husky. I blinked at him, confused. He took a few steps closer to me and then reached out, brushing his thumb along my cheek and lips. "I think…after all this, I think I…"

"You what?" I whispered as he stepped even closer, almost closing the distance between us.

"I think I fell in love with you somewhere along the way."

My breath caught in my throat. My whole world seemed to slow down, stop, tilt, and the slow down again.

"I can't do this," he said. "I can't stay here."

My knees trembled. "Sasuke-kun," I whispered brokenly. "Please…"

For the first time since I had met him, Sasuke wrapped his arms around me in a tight hug.

Just like I'd always wanted.

"I'm sorry, Sakura," he whispered back. "Forgive me."

Just like that, he was gone, his presence still lingering on the spot he had been. I stood there, staring at the direction he'd left for a long time.

Eventually realizing how cold it was, I slowly made my way home and plopped down onto the bed, crying myself to sleep for the first time since Sasuke had returned.

**Very depressing chapter, I know. I hope you liked it anyway. I had fun writing it; I had the whole picture of this in my head while I wrote. Review please. Love xx**


	17. Chapter 17

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter. Thanks for all the reviews, I really appreciate it. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Seventeen xx**

"Come on, Sakura," Ino said, flicking my forehead. "You can't stay in your bed depressed forever."

"Watch me," I mumbled.

"Ino's right, Sakura-chan," Naruto told me. "It's been two weeks. I get that you're upset about Sasuke leaving and all, but you can't just stay buried in your blankets for the rest of your life." He nudged Gaara. "Tell her, Gaara."

"Sakura, get out of bed," Gaara said. "While Sasuke is out living his life you're laying here doing nothing."

"You're pregnant, for God's sakes, Sakura," Ino exclaimed. "Go walk around! Do something! You've barely eaten; the poor baby is probably starving in there."

_My baby._ She was right. My baby needed me.

I sat up, sniffling. "Fine," I muttered. "Where should we go?"

Ino squealed. "Yes! I'm taking you out to eat. So fix yourself up, get dressed and let's go!"

I sighed unhappily.

**XXXXXX**

"Tenten," Neji breathed. "You're awake."

Tenten blinked, her eyes burning as soon as they were exposed to the light in the room. "Neji…?" she croaked. She sat up abruptly. Bad idea. A sharp pain stung her back. Her head began to throb.

"Owww," she whined. "What the hell?"

"Tenten, listen to me," Neji urged. "You have to tell me who did this to you. Do you remember who it was?"

"Did what to me?" Tenten asked. "Why am I even here in the hospital?"

Neji stared at her blankly. "This is not the time to be joking around, Tenten."

She raised her eyebrow. "I'm not joking about anything, Neji."

"You…don't remember what happened to you?"

"I don't remember anything that happened in the past few weeks," Tenten replied, rubbing her temples.

Neji blinked at her.

"The only thing I remember is the festival," she said. "That's my last memory."

She doesn't remember anything that happened after the festival? Which means…she forgot that they had kissed?

Neji did not expect this, but he slowly remembered the last time they kissed. They had both felt the bittersweet aura that was there when they were kissing; they had both knew something was going to happen to stop this.

His fists clenched, and then unclenched. No, no. He needed to calm down. Everything would be fine. All he would have to do was kiss her again and she'd remember, and then find out who the hell hurt her and kill him and everything would be okay again.

Right?

**XXXXXX**

It was pretty hard to eat, considering everyone could hear Naruto and Hinata making out in the corner. Naruto had actually ditched his bowl of ramen to kiss her, which was saying a lot.

Ino, Gaara, Shikamaru, Hinata, Naruto and I had decided to just stay home and order some food instead.

The ramen was very appealing to me right now. In fact, I finished eating before anyone else, but that was probably because I hadn't had a proper meal in days.

"Get a room," Shikamaru drawled to Naruto and Hinata.

"Yeah I mean, when are you two going to quit swapping spit?" Ino asked.

The couple ignored them and continued to kiss as if no one had spoken at all.

"Who would've thought Hinata would be the one to get a boyfriend before any of us did?" Ino mumbled, and then she paused and looked at me. "Except you, of course. You're married."

I twitched and she apologized for bringing it up.

I glanced down at my hand and twisted the ring on my finger around. I touched my stomach, wondering when the baby would start to grow.

"Come on, Sakura," Ino said. "Forget about Sasuke. At least for one night."

I sighed and nodded, then tried for a smile. "I'll be right back," I said, running to the bathroom. I grabbed the spare pregnancy test I had.

I faintly heard Ino and Shikamaru arguing in the living room, and I rolled my eyes.

I glanced at the test. Negative.

_What?_

The first time I had taken it, it had confirmed I was pregnant…

"Sakura!" Ino yelled. "Get your butt over here!"

"Coming!" I replied shakily, throwing away the test and wiping my sweaty palms against my pants before walking back out to my friends.

"Okay!" Ino shouted, clapping her hands together. "Let's play truth or dare. Naruto and Hinata, that means you two as well!"

They didn't answer. How could they be making out for so long?

Ino glared and threw her chopsticks at them. They jumped and broke apart. Hinata looked painfully shy; Naruto looked annoyed.

"Why'd you do that?" he asked.

"We're playing truth or dare now, loser," she snapped. "So join in. Both of you."

Shikamaru sighed. "This is so troublesome."

"I'll go first," Ino said. "Naruto, truth or dare?"

"Truth."

She grinned devilishly. "Is it true you had sex with Hinata?"

Hinata blushed a deep shade of red and Naruto began to choke. At least now Gaara and Shikamaru looked interested in the game.

"No," Hinata said, still blushing. She patted Naruto's back gently as he continued to cough.

"Who even said that?" Naruto exclaimed.

Ino shrugged and smiled. "Okay. Gaara, truth or dare?"

At first Gaara looked like he wasn't going to answer, but he eventually said, "Truth."

"Is it true you screwed Hinata?"

Shikamaru burst out laughing and Hinata's eyes bulged.

"_WHAT?!"_ Naruto shouted, jumping to his feet. "If you did, Gaara, so help me, I'll kill you!"

Gaara sighed and closed his eyes. "No. I didn't."

Leave it to Ino to make everything interesting and awkward. Well, now it's my turn. "Ino!" I exclaimed. "Truth or dare?"

Ino smiled, perked up now that everyone was into the game. "Dare," she said deviously. "Let's make things a little fun."

I smirked. "Fine. Kiss Shikamaru."

"Ha-ha!" Naruto laughed, pointing at her like a little kid. I rolled my eyes at his immaturity.

Hinata giggled and Gaara just looked at her, clearly amused.

"What's wrong, Ino?" I teased. "Can't do it?"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes. "This game is stupid."

Ino turned on him. "What's _that_ supposed to mean? You seemed to be having fun a second ago!"

"It doesn't mean anything."

"What? Are you so disgusted by me that you can't even kiss me?"

"I didn't _say_ that, Ino."

She huffed and turned away. "You didn't have to."

"Stop being so stupid," Shikamaru said. "You have a boyfriend, anyway."

"Sai is _not_ my boyfriend! We broke up four days ago!"

"You did?" I asked, bewildered.

"Whatever. You're getting on my nerves," Shikamaru drawled.

Ino gaped. _"I'm_ getting on _your_ nerves?!"

"Just kiss already!" Naruto cried, and with that, Shikamaru grabbed her and kissed her, long and deep.

They pulled away after a while, breathing heavily. "Okay," Ino panted. It was obvious neither of them expected that to happened, and I kind of adored the way Shikamaru was staring at her. It was so cute. "Who wants to go take a nice midnight stroll in the woods?"

Everyone agreed and we all left as quickly as we could, not wanting to get involved in the awkward vibe between Ino and Shikamaru.

**XXXXXX**

The cuteness between Hinata and Naruto was too much to bear. His arm was resting upon her shoulders, and her head was leaning on him as they walked together through the cold. Shikamaru and Ino were walking side by side, leaning into each other once in a while and then distancing themselves and apologizing before slowly making their way back. Gaara was walking by himself, enjoying his time alone. I, however, was not enjoying my time alone whatsoever.

"It's freezing," I mumbled to no one in particular, my breath coming out in little white puffs. The black night sky reminded me of Sasuke.

_Sasuke._

"You alright, Sakura?" Gaara asked. "You look worried."

I breathed out slowly. "I'm fine."

We lapsed into silence.

"Gaara," I finally said. He looked at me. "That day…when you, you know, kissed me-"

"You don't have to say anything," he interrupted. "I know you're in love with Sasuke. Don't worry; I'm not mad."

I peered at him, relieved. "Really? That's…really nice, Gaara. Thank you."

He nodded and I smiled and threw my arms around him in a tight hug. He hugged me back, which definitely eased the cold, making us both a little warmer.

Everyone had stopped walking, and they were all just talking. Gaara and I stayed in our warm hug, though. I couldn't stand the cold anymore, and there was nothing wrong with giving him a hug.

"Sakura-chan!" I heard Naruto shout. I pulled away from Gaara and turned to look at Naruto-

But Sasuke was blocking my view.

I stared at his chest for about 30 seconds in complete shock, before my gaze moved up to his very angry face.

He glared at Gaara and began to advance towards him.

"Sasuke!" I cried, pressing my hands against his chest, trying to force him to stop. "Don't touch him!"

Sasuke turned his glare on to me. "Since when do you care for him?" he snapped.

My temper was rising. I grew angry in less than a minute. "Are you _kidding me?"_ I shrieked. _"You're_ the one who left me alone for _weeks_ after we got married and I gave up my damn _virginity _to you, and now you're going to get mad because I _care_ about Gaara and I was_ hugging_ him?!"

"Um…maybe we should…go…" Naruto said awkwardly.

"Yeah…" Ino mumbled in agreement. She grabbed Gaara's hand. "Let's go, guys."

I barely noticed that they had left. "You have absolutely no right to get angry at me! You have absolutely no right to leave me and then just come strolling back into my life and attempt to kill a guy because I was hugging him!"

Sasuke didn't reply. His anger did not seem to waver, though.

"I haven't seen you in weeks! _Weeks! _You're supposed to be my husband for God's sakes! Do you think after all that I'm really going to-"

His hand was suddenly on the back of my neck, dragging me to him and crushing his lips against mine. In my anger, I'd forgotten how much I'd missed him. I closed my eyes, lost in the feeling of Sasuke.

He was touching me everywhere. His hands were roaming all over me; from my cheeks, to my waist, to my neck, to my thighs, and he'd even tangle them in my hair. Every once in a while he would pull away to press his lips against my neck and breathe in the scent of me.

At this moment, Sasuke was acting like he truly did love me, and I was going to savour it for as long as I could no matter how angry I was with him.

His hand slid up my shirt and his fingers brushed my stomach, but I think he was not aware that he was doing so.

His lips were on mine, and his kiss was hungry and hot and rough. He whispered something in my ear and I didn't hear him; I was lost in the sensation of his skin. So I just nodded and he entwined his fingers with mine and he began to lead me away. I didn't know where we were going; right now, I didn't care.

Though I wasn't all that surprised when I ended up at his house.

**Yeah, yeah. Boring chapter, I know. It took me hours to write this due to my major case of writer's block. It's pretty obvious what's going to happen at Sasuke's house, but I decided to leave it until the next chapter because I don't know how I'm supposed to describe their scene. Anyway, review please. Love xx**


	18. Chapter 18

**Hello! Thank you so much for your reviews! I'll try to update this story as much as I can, but school is so close so I'm going to try to finish before it starts! Enjoy!**

**Chapter Eighteen xx**

"Sakura," he breathed into my ear.

"I'm not pregnant, Sasuke," I whispered. "So just do it."

His bed was so comfortable and it was even more appealing due to the fact that Sasuke's naked body was on top of me.

He was propped up on his elbows, which were on either side of my head.

"You're not pregnant?" he said. We were both panting.

I shook my head. "Just…do it, Sasuke…I'm dying over here!"

His lips went down to my ear and I kissed his neck.

"Sakura," he moaned into my ear.

Why was he taking so long? I couldn't stand waiting.

A loud smash broke us from our daze. Sasuke's head shot up and he looked back at the door.

"Who's there?" I whispered, frozen.

Sasuke shot me a glare. "How am I supposed to know?"

"Well, go find out!" I hissed, smacking his shoulder. "You're the man in this relationship! Now go be the badass you are and check to see who's there!"

He let out a long, lazy sigh, kind of like the ones Shikamaru does. Sasuke being lazy? Today was just full of surprises.

He got out of bed, threw on his pants and boxers and began to leave.

"Wait here," he told me, closing the door behind him.

I obeyed until I heard another loud crash and I jumped out of bed, throwing my robe on and running out to see what the hell was going on.

I yelped when I accidentally bumped into Sasuke's back. He turned to glare at me. "I told you to wait in the room!"

I put my hands on my hips. "What's going on here?"

I flicked the lights open and screamed at the bloodied body on the floor.

"Sakura!" Sasuke said.

I continued to scream.

"Sakura!"

I ignored him and kept screaming.

"_Sakura!"_

My screams were cut off when his hand clamped over my mouth. "Shut _up,"_ he growled.

"There's a dead body on our floor!" I said against his hand, voice muffled.

He removed his hand. "You've seen worse."

It's true, I have. But none of them had caught me off guard like this one.

"Who is he?" I asked.

Before Sasuke could answer, I felt rough hands grab me and pull me back. One arm was around my neck and the other held a knife against my hip.

A few seconds ago Sasuke was calm, relaxed even, but once he saw me in the position that I was, his eyes changed and he was immediately the ever so frightening Uchiha prodigy.

I wasn't afraid. Not when Sasuke was around.

"Alright," the man's voice was rough. "I won't hurt you if you let me take the girl."

Sasuke burst out laughing, but as usual, his laugh was bitter and humourless. _"You_ won't hurt _me?_ Do you even know who I am?"

I elbowed the man's stomach and he grunted but didn't budge. "Don't move, girl," he said to me. "It'll only make things worse for you."

"Kiss my ass," I snapped, elbowing him again and again.

His grip finally loosened and I freed myself from his grasp. Sasuke's hands immediately reached out to me and pulled me to him, shoving me behind him.

"You people are annoying," Sasuke said. "I was perfectly fine until you came. Now I'm in a bad mood." His black eyes transformed into the bloody sharingan. "You won't like me when I'm in a bad mood."

The man's eyes widened. "You're the Uchiha fellow, aren't you?"

Sasuke smirked.

"All I want is the girl," the man said.

"Too bad," Sasuke snapped. "You can't have her."

The man frowned. "Boss didn't say the pink-haired med ninja was your girlfriend."

"Wife," Sasuke corrected. "And who the hell is your boss and what does he need from her?"

My stomach got butterflies when Sasuke had called me his wife.

I thought about it. This man called me a med ninja. Who else knew I was a med ninja but that guy who wanted me to heal his employee? The one who'd locked me in a cell when I'd refused to do it for him?

Fear washed over me. I closed my eyes. What a damn buzz kill.

"Sasuke," I whispered. "I think I know who wants me."

Sasuke's bloody eyes met mine and realization seemed to dawn on him. "Me too."

He turned back to the man. "Get out," he ordered. "And don't let me see your face in my house again or I'll kill you." His eyes narrowed. "I have no mercy."

The man glared, but we all knew he was afraid. He hoisted his dead friend over his shoulder and left, slamming the door behind him.

"S-Sasuke-kun?" I whispered, beginning to shiver; partly from the cold and partly from fear.

He looked at me and his eyes went back to their regular black when he saw me shaking. "Calm down, Sakura. They're not going to come back here."

And suddenly, I remembered what we were doing twenty minutes ago, and just like that my throat went dry because I was literally craving _Sasuke._

"Just kiss me, Sasuke," I said.

He raised his eyebrows but didn't hesitate to do as I asked. Once his lips made contact with mine I was pinned between the table and Sasuke. He was pressing me against it, his body crushed against mine.

Never in a million years had I imagined that I would be doing this with Sasuke. I had never thought we would be married, and he'd be trying to get me pregnant. I had never thought that he could actually love me.

_If he loved you so much, he would have come back to Konoha with you, _Inner Sakura pronounced. A part of my brain was whispering to me that I was being used. And for the record, I was. Wasn't that the plan from the beginning? Marry Sasuke and bear his children, but don't expect any kind of love in return.

Oh, man. I wasn't actually pregnant yet…I still had a chance to ask for a divorce…

I mentally smacked myself. Sasuke had said it himself; he needs me. How can I leave him?

But how could I have his child if he didn't love me? I'd look at the kid every day and see Sasuke. So what was I supposed to do?

Stay for Sasuke, or go home and forget about him?

As if I could actually forget about him. That left me with two options; stay and be miserable, or go and be miserable.

This was way too complicated.

But I think I know what I have to do.

**I KNOW IT'S A BORING CHAPTER! I'm sorry I had such a bad case of writer's block I sat here for hours contemplating what to write next. Review anyway, please! Love xx**


	19. Chapter 19

**Hello everyone! Thank you so much for the reviews. Here is the next chapter! Enjoy!**

**Chapter Nineteen xx**

"Tenten, just close your eyes!"

Tenten sighed and rolled her eyes instead.

"This is stupid," she said. "What makes you think this will help me remember anything about what happened in the past few weeks?"

"Just try it, Tenten," Naruto replied. "You never know if you don't try!"

"Naruto-kun is right," Hinata agreed. "Just close your eyes and think as hard as you can, Tenten-chan."

"Think of Neji," Naruto suggested. "Maybe if you think about that time you and him ki-"

Neji smacked Naruto's forehead to shut him up.

"What was that for?" Naruto growled, glaring at Neji.

Neji ignored him, and Naruto, being the idiot he was, spoke up again. "As I was saying, Tenten, if you just remember when you and Neji ki-"

"Naruto!" Neji hissed, smacking him again. "Shut up!"

Tenten raised her eyebrows at both of them, clearly confused.

"What's your problem, jerk?!" Naruto snapped.

"N-Naruto-kun," Hinata whispered, tugging on his sleeve. She whispered something in his ear and realization dawned on him.

"_Oh!" _Naruto cried. "I get it. So Neji doesn't want Tenten to know that they ki-"

For the third time, Neji's hand reached out and smacked the blond idiot's forehead.

"Heh," Naruto said sheepishly, grinning. "Woops."

Neji closed his own eyes and counted to ten in an attempt to calm down and refrain himself from ripping Naruto's head off.

"Close your eyes, Tenten," Neji said.

Tenten, still curious as to what was going on, closed her eyes and waited.

"Um…what's the next step?" Naruto asked.

Neji and Hinata didn't reply due to the fact that neither of them knew what the hell the next step was.

Tenten understood the silence and she opened her eyes and groaned, rubbing her temples in frustration.

This was going to take _forever._

**XXXXXX**

I plopped down onto the grass and crossed my legs, sighing heavily.

"Thank God I found you guys here," I said.

Shikamaru leaned against a tree lazily, Ino smiled at me and then sent a quick glance at Shikamaru while biting her lip which only I noticed, and Gaara was just sitting there, arms crossed, staring at nothing, as usual.

"So do you mind telling me exactly what happened?" Ino asked. "Why did you leave Sasuke's house? I thought you were going to stay there."

"I had to leave," I said. "I found out I wasn't pregnant a few days ago and…I couldn't let him do it when I was at his house. Not if he doesn't love me."

_But he does love you,_ a small voice inside my head whispered, but it was easily washed away by the feelings that assured me I was being used.

"So you just left?" she asked. "You snuck out without a word?"

"Yeah, basically."

Of course, I'd felt terribly guilty about leaving him. But some decisions I had to make for myself, and Sasuke needed to understand that this was a give and take situation; if he was only willing to take, I wouldn't allow myself to give.

"Smart move," Ino replied, nodding at me.

Shikamaru scoffed, but then let out a fake cough in a fail attempt to cover it up.

Ino glared at him. "What?" she asked. "You don't think it was smart of her to leave Sasuke?"

"I don't think about this at all," he replied. "It's none of my business."

"No, no," Ino assured him in a mocking tone. "Go ahead and share with us your _opinion,_ Shikamaru."

Shikamaru sighed a long, lazy sigh and sat up. "What a drag," he drawled. "I just think that maybe Sasuke really did like her."

"What makes you say that?" Ino snapped. "Didn't you hear her tell us the story? He's _using_ her!"

Shikamaru shrugged. "I think he changed his mind. People change, Ino. And anyway, this is all too troublesome. I don't even care."

"You're just an idiot," Ino stated.

Shikamaru and I gave her a look.

"Fine," she huffed. "You're _not _an idiot. I get it, you're a genius. Stop giving me that look. But you're still irritating."

"Since when did you guys start dating?" I asked casually. Shikamaru sighed lazily and Ino choked.

"We're not dating, billboard brow!" Ino hissed, twitching.

I shrugged. "Sorry, Ino_-pig._ It's not _my _fault you two look like one of those old-crazy-in-love-always-arguing married couple."

"We're not in love, Sakura!" Ino cried. "So just keep _quiet."_

"As if _we'd_ ever be in love," Shikamaru mumbled.

Ino turned on him and gaped. "What the hell is _that_ supposed to mean?"

Shikamaru dropped his head. "Oh, man. So troublesome."

"Any guy would be _lucky _to date me, you lazy son of a-"

"_Okay!"_ I interrupted. "Let just calm down here, shall we? We don't want anything to-"

"And you know what else?" Ino rambled on. "I don't need to sit here and be insulted by-"

Shikamaru glanced at her for the first time since we'd sat down, and Ino shut up immediately. I would have if I were her, too. The way he was staring at her; something was in his eyes, and they just continued to gaze at each other. Shikamaru put his hand on the back of her neck and pulled her in slowly and kissed her just as slowly.

Gaara was silent the whole time. I mean, it made me kind of uncomfortable to be just sitting there awkwardly as they made out, but Gaara was in the same position the whole time looking as normal as ever.

At the exact moment they pulled away, I turned to look at Gaara.

He was gone.

"Gaara?" I asked, looking around. "Where are you?"

"Ino, Shikamaru!" I said, turning to look at them.

But they were gone as well.

What the…?

"Uh, guys?" I called, standing up. "Very funny, but I'm not falling for it. You can come out now."

"Well, well."

I shrieked and wheeled around. My jaw dropped when I saw the man who had locked me in the cell. Oh, man. You have _got_ to be kidding me.

"Nice to see you again, Mrs. Uchiha," he said.

"What do you want?" I asked, taking a step back.

"Don't even bother running away," he told me. "I've got my people all around you."

"Where are my friends?" I shouted, glaring.

"Don't worry about them. We left them unconscious somewhere in the woods. We don't want them to get in our way, do we?" He took a step closer to me. "Now, where is your dear Sasuke?"

"I don't have to tell you anything!" I snarled.

"Not here to protect you, is he?" He smiled sadistically at me. "Don't worry. I'm just going to take you back to that cell and give you another three days to think about helping me."

He tilted his head to the side, cracking his neck. "Take her, boys."

I was prepared to fight; I seriously was. But I knew once I saw how many men there were that I couldn't take them all on alone. I had to give Sasuke a way to find me. So I swiftly bit my finger hard, drawing blood. I brought my finger up to my forehead protector and brushed my blood against it. The men were idiots; none of them understood what I was doing and none of them bothered to ask. One of them grabbed me and I used that time to swiftly take off my forehead protector. It clattered to the ground and at the exact moment something slammed into the back of my head, knocking me to the floor. Darkness washed over.

**Hope you liked it! Please review, babes. Love xx**


	20. Chapter 20

**Hello everyone, thank you very much for reviewing. I'm sorry the chapters can't be longer; I write these very late when I'm tired. The story is coming to an end; there are only a few chapters left. Enjoy.**

**Chapter Twenty xx**

"Here's your meal for the day," a huge man said to me. Well, he didn't actually say it properly. He almost barked it out. Like a dog. "Enjoy, bitch."

I twitched and glanced down at the spaghetti and bread. It would look plain weird to anybody else; it didn't look tasty at all. But to me it looked like a gourmet meal. I was so hungry; my stomach was practically eating itself.

I sighed and stared at the plate. I was definitely hungry, but I was in no mood to eat anything. My body ached from cold and hunger and pain. It's been two days. Tomorrow they are going to ask me for my decision. They are going to kill me, because there's no way in hell I'm healing whoever it was they want me to heal. The only thing I was happy about was that they hadn't chained me; it released the tension of my claustrophobia.

I had given up all hope. I was going to die tomorrow. I just wished I could've said goodbye to everyone.

**XXXXXX**

"This is not working," Tenten complained. "We've been doing this for _days._ It's not going to work!"

Hinata pressed her lips together. "Okay, well, maybe if we re-enact something special that happened to you in the past few weeks, you'll remember."

"But I don't know if anything special has happened," Tenten said. "I don't remember anything!"

Naruto grinned slowly and devilishly. He glanced at Neji. "I remember something special that has happened to you, Tenten."

Neji glared at Naruto, knowing exactly what he meant. "Naruto, you better keep your mouth shu-"

"Naruto-kun is right, Neji," Hinata interrupted. "You have to do it. It's the only chance we have at this point."

Neji opened his mouth to protest but Tenten, being clueless about what had happened, exclaimed, "Yeah, Neji! Whatever it is just do it, okay?!"

Naruto burst out laughing. "He's going to have to kiss you, Tenten."

Tenten stared at them blankly. "No. Neji and I have never kissed. What are you talking about?"

Hinata blushed. "Yes, y-you have. More than once."

Neji leaned back in his seat and tried to stay void of any emotion; it was easy for him, though. Years of mastering that blank stare no matter what was going on was coming in handy.

Tenten blushed deeply. "I hate to be blunt, but just kiss me, Neji. If it's the only chance I have of remembering than it's worth a try."

Neji caught her gaze and he slowly removed himself from his seat and walked over to her bed.

He leaned in, but he paused just as their lips were touching slightly, brushing against each other, and Tenten drew in a shaky breath. He noticed the way her pulse was racing and how she could hardly breathe and how she was fidgeting and how red in the face she was, so he allowed himself a slight smile out of satisfaction before pressing his lips against hers.

Tenten lost it. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him as deeply as she could, her mind and body going slightly insane at the feeling of Neji's cool lips.

Very slowly, memories came rushing back.

_Neji…_

Her mind swirled and the room began to spin partly due to the fact that she was regaining her memories, and partly due to the fact that Neji was kissing her passionately.

She remembered what happened after the festival. That invisible thing dragging her away.

The room seemed to tilt.

Tenten pulled away, panting, gazing into Neji's pale eyes which were looking at her with such intensity it made butterflies flutter in her stomach. "I know who did this to me."

**XXXXXX**

I heard the door creak open, but I thought it was probably one of those annoying men who came to bring me food or taunt me, so I kept my eyes closed. I was sweating, yet shivering from the cold.

"Sakura."

I froze, teeth chattering. That voice…it can't be.

"Sakura, open your eyes."

I obeyed, carefully peeling my eyes open to find red ones staring back at me.

"Sasuke-kun…?" I whispered. This must be a dream. "I'm dreaming, aren't I?" I said dazedly.

Sasuke gave me a look that said, _Are you an idiot?_

"You're so cute in my dreams," I mumbled, still gazing at him. "You're cuter in person, though. Why haven't you come to rescue me, Sasuke? I was waiting for you."

Everything felt numb; my body, mind and soul. I felt nothing, and everything around me seemed like it didn't exist; as if it was all just one big, lovely dream filled with heartbreak and despair.

"Sakura, you're not dreaming," Sasuke told me. "Have you had anything to eat?" He swore under his breath and lifted me up bridal-style. "You feel as if you weigh nothing, Sakura. Why haven't you eaten?"

"This food disgusts me," I muttered. "I want something different."

I knew we were moving; my eyes had slid shut again but I could feel us moving. Sasuke was running, fast, to who knows where.

It was so cold; I'd never felt so frozen before. I wanted to open my eyes, but I couldn't muster up the energy for it.

Sasuke swore again and ran faster. Within minutes I heard a door slam shut and felt a warm blast.

Sasuke set me down on something nice and comfy (a couch, I presume). I opened my eyes as carefully as I could and winced in pain when I sat up. Sasuke left for a few minutes and returned with a bowl of ramen in his hand. He began to feed me, and I opened my mouth for every bite and finished the bowl and allowed him to bathe me when I was done and listened to whatever he said, mostly because I was too tired to argue but partly because I owed him for leaving without a word.

"Sasuke-kun…" I mumbled. "We…need to…talk…"

"We'll talk tomorrow. You're going to sleep now."

I shook my head, still dazed. "But Sasuke-kun…I'm sorry for…leaving..."

He lifted me up and carried me to his room, setting me down on the bed and covering me with the blanket. "Just sleep," he ordered. "We can talk tomorrow."

"Aren't you going to kiss me, Sasuke-kun?" I asked weakly. He leaned down and pressed his lips against mine gently. He kissed me sweetly but it only lasted for a brief amount of time. He pulled away and my eyes slid shut and I fell into a blissful sleep before he could even get to the door.

**There you go, guys. Hope you liked it. I'll be updating soon. Sorry if there are any spelling mistakes, I didn't re-read my work, I'm too sleepy. Hehe, review please. Love xx**


	21. Chapter 21

**Hey everyone, thanks for reviewing. Here is the next chapter. Enjoy babes.**

**Chapter Twenty-One xx**

"We need to talk," I said, putting a hand on my hip. "Now."

Sasuke looked up at me, clearly in no mood to talk about anything. He ignored me and continued staring at the television blankly.

"Come on, Sasuke," I told him. "Just listen to me."

Again, he ignored me. I grabbed the remote out of his hands and switched the television off, then stood with my hands on my hips in front of him.

"There's nothing to talk about," he said. "What's done is done."

"Sasuke, just let me explain to you why I left."

"I don't care why you left," he responded coldly. "Either way, you did."

"I _left_ because I didn't want to have your child if I didn't think you loved me," I explained, regardless of his apparent nonchalance.

His eyes changed; something in them shifted and they flashed dangerously. "I told you what I felt that night."

"It's not enough to just tell me you love me, Sasuke. Anyone can do that and lie. It's easy."

Sasuke's gaze finally met mine. "No. It's not."

I thought about this. Okay, maybe it wasn't easy for someone like Sasuke to admit their feelings of love for someone. But still. Just because he was a Uchiha doesn't mean he got special treatment. If he really did love me he'd prove it.

"Fine," I said. "But you're different for me, Sasuke. I love you a _lot._ Literally e_veryone_ knows it. No one can compare to you in my book. So I'm glad that you love me back, but…you have to prove it to me. It's not that easy. I've been chasing you for years. Most of my life has revolved around you. One simple 'I love you' doesn't really prove anything."

"Sakura, you should know by now that I'm not one to speak about my _feelings," _he said, standing up. "When I do speak of them, it's because I need to. If I say _'_I love you' to someone, I mean it." He was towering over me, eyes intense and lips inches away. I wanted to kiss him, but that would mark the end of the conversation, and I wasn't finished yet.

"Well," I said, clearing my throat. "I get that. But you can still come back to Konoha, Sasuke." My voice dropped to a whisper, but only because I was on the verge of tears and I didn't want him to hear my voice break. "We're all waiting for you."

Regardless of my attempt, Sasuke still noticed my eyes watering. He sighed heavily. "Tell them to move on," he replied tiredly. "I'm not going back."

"Sasuke…"

"Forget about it, Sakura. Just forget it."

"Sit down, Sasuke."

He glared at me. "Why?"

"Just _sit down, _Sasuke!" I snapped, poking his chest. He sat down and looked up at me, waiting.

"Now," I said hoarsely, grabbing some chains from Sasuke's room. I wondered for a split second why the hell he had chains in there, but then remembered that this was Sasuke we were talking about; the "evil" merciless killer. I walked back to him and tied him up tightly, but not tight enough to hurt. It surprised me that he sat through it, but he was cursing at me under his breath and every few minutes he'd tug at the chains to try and break free.

"You are going to listen to me, Sasuke_-kun,"_ I told him. "Or else."

He smirked. "Or else what?"

I leaned down and kissed him gently but very briefly. I pulled away before ten seconds had passed by. Sasuke looked annoyed at the shortness of the kiss.

"You'll get those kisses. Short, sweet, but deadly." I gave him a wicked grin. "Trust me. It'll drive you insane because you can't touch me, and they won't last any longer than 6 seconds."

He glared at me.

"Now, Sasuke-kun. Are you coming back to Konoha? Your friends _really_ do miss you, you know," I said sweetly.

"No," he snapped.

I leaned down to him, our lips just brushing each other gently, not yet kissing. "Wrong answer," I hissed, pressing my lips against his and pulling away again quickly.

His eyes narrowed.

"I'm going to ask you again, Sasuke. Are you going to come back to Konoha?" I whispered in his ear. "We can have a home. And you can finally, _finally _get me pregnant. Isn't that what you want, Sasuke-kun? To touch me in places no man ever has?"

"I'm not coming back," he said, but I swore I heard his voice crack. I kissed him again and pulled away.

He twitched.

I smirked. "Have you changed your mind yet, Sasuke?"

"No," he said gruffly. Oh, he was so stubborn.

"Fine," I murmured, leaning down to him. This time, I aimed for his neck, landing sweet, soft kisses on it before heading up to his jaw and stopping at the corner of his lips. My hand slid down his shirt. To my satisfaction, he was panting, and his heart was racing.

"Sakura," he groaned. "Come _on."_

"Nope, sorry," I mumbled. "You don't get a way out this time. Come back with me and I'll touch the rest of you, and you can do the same to me."

"This is not fair," he said sharply.

I grinned. "Who ever said that life was fair?"

"Why did I even let you tie me up?" he muttered.

I pulled away from his mouth and looked at him. "Because I'm your wife," I declared. "And I can do whatever I want."

"Sakura," he sighed. "It's not funny anymore. Untie me."

I straddled his lap and I almost giggled out of sheer happiness when he held his breath.

"It was never meant to be funny, Sasuke," I said. "Well, at least, not for you. It was pretty entertaining for me. And it's not over yet. It won't be until you agree to come back and _stay."_

I pressed myself against him and tangled my fingers in his hair, stopping just short of his lips.

"Well, Sasuke?" I whispered. "What's it gonna be?"

"Fine," he breathed. "Fine, fine, I'll go back."

I grinned slowly. "Good answer," I mumbled before crushing his lips to mine.

He kissed me back aggressively; he'd never kissed me so roughly and passionately before. I could feel him tugging hard at his restraints during the kiss, wanting so badly to break free, as if he actually craved to touch me. I slid my tongue into his mouth and the chains snapped open. His arms wrapped around me instantly, flooding me with warmth. He then moved his hands down to my thighs, gripping them as I kissed him even deeper, if that was possible.

I pulled away, panting, face flushed. "So, we leave tomor-"

My words were cut short when his lips smashed into mine. I tried to open my mouth and speak, but he took advantage of that and his tongue slid into my mouth.

Oh, man. If I wasn't still in pain from yesterday's events, I'd be the happiest girl in the world right now.

He pulled away and I pressed my forehead against his. "I can't believe you're coming back, Sasuke-kun," I whispered breathlessly.

He didn't answer for a while. And when he did, his words took my breath away. "I love you, Sakura," he said. He paused and continued, a bit gruffly, "Remember that. Don't ever make me say it again."

I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him, leaning my head onto his shoulder, tears of happiness threatening to spill. He hugged me back, nose buried in my neck, and we stayed like that for a while in silence; the only sound we could hear was the beating of our hearts.

Neither one of us spoke; we didn't need to. After all, actions speak louder than words, and right now, all our actions were screaming one thing; _love._

Lovely, wasn't it?

**NO, the story is not over. Hope you liked this. I'm sorry if it was too descriptive or…wasn't descriptive enough? Let me know what you guys think. Love xx**


	22. Chapter 22

**Sorry that I haven't updated in a while. I've been busy. Thanks for reviewing, here's the LAST chapter. Please read the author's note at the end. Enjoy.**

**Chapter Twenty-Two xx**

"Just tell us, Sakura."

I rubbed my tummy and leaned back against my seat.

"Whatever it is, we can handle it," Ino said. "We handled the fact that Sasuke came back two weeks ago, and now you're living together." She paused. "It took all my restraint not to rip his head off for breaking your heart."

"So, you and Shikamaru are dating huh?" I asked, winking at her. She grinned and blushed.

"Tell us what the big news is, Sakura-chan," Hinata said.

"I'm pregnant," I said. "For real this time."

Everyone erupted into cheers. Ino pulled me up from my seat and jumped around, clapping happily. The house was filled with screams and happy cheers.

"I have another big announcement!" Naruto shouted. Everyone quieted down and looked at him. "Hinata-chan."

Hinata looked at him shyly. "Yes, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto dropped to his knees and Ino let out an ear-splitting scream. Hinata turned as red as a tomato.

"Will you marry me?" he asked.

"SAY YES!" Tenten shouted.

Hinata looked around, blushing madly. She opened her mouth to say something…

And dropped to the floor, unconscious.

We all stood there and stared for almost ten minutes.

"What just happened?" I asked.

Naruto stood up and looked down at her. "I'm going to pretend she said yes."

Ino shook her head and sighed.

**XXXXXX**

"What happened to that thing that attacked Tenten?" I asked Neji.

He shrugged. "We looked for it. It never showed up. But she got her memories back, so it doesn't matter."

"Are you going to ask Tenten to marry you?"

Neji said nothing but we all knew the answer was yes.

"Hinata!" Ino snapped. "Stand still! How am I going to do your hair if you keep moving?"

"The dress is so uncomfortable," Hinata whispered, despair covering her face.

"But you look sexy," Ino replied. "So you're going to have to deal with it."

"I still don't understand how you can marry someone like Naruto," Neji said, shaking his head.

"Get over it, Neji," Ino said. "Let her be happy."

Sasuke slammed the door open and walked in uninvited.

"Um, _excuse_ me, Uchiha?" Ino snapped, putting a hand on her hip and tapping her foot impatiently. "We're busy here. You can make out with Sakura on your own time. We're trying to get ready for a wedding."

Shikamaru strolled in after him and made his way over to Ino. He kissed her. "Never mind," Ino said sheepishly, face flushed when they pulled away. "You guys can do whatever you want."

Tenten sighed heavily and leaned against Neji. She was sitting very comfortably on his lap; they looked adorable together, like one of those couple you see cuddling in movies. The kind of relationship every girl wished they had. He tilted his head lower so that his lips were at her neck.

"Where's dobe?" Sasuke asked, wrapping his arm around me.

"Getting ready," I replied.

Just then, Naruto came running in. "Guys!" he said breathlessly. "How the _hell_ do you put on a stupid _tie?"_

"Naruto!" Ino scolded. "You're not supposed to see the bride before the wedding!"

He looked at Hinata and his eyes widened. "Wow, Hinata-chan," he breathed. "You look _great!"_

I gritted my teeth and my fist clenched. "Naruto!" I shouted. "You idiot! Get out!"

"But, Sakura-chan-"

I slammed my fist against his face, knocking him out of the room.

"Sakura-chan!" he groaned. "Owww…"

"Moron," I mumbled, turning away.

Shikamaru sighed lazily. "Tch. This is so troublesome."

"Let's just go help the loser," Sasuke muttered, walking out. Neji followed.

Shikamaru sighed again. "What a drag."

As soon as they were all gone, we looked at Hinata and grinned cheekily. "Ready, Hinata?" I asked. "It's time!"

"Of c-course," she said softly. We began to lead her out the door, but halfway there, she collapsed.

Tenten, Ino and I sweat dropped.

My life was complicated, messy, hard, and completely screwed-up.

But it was perfect.

**The End.**

**Yep, that's all for this story. I know it's a short ending, I'm sorry. But not a lot of people reviewed, so I wasn't that motivated to finish it properly. But I will be writing more stories soon. Thanks everyone. Love xx**


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